Trip to Utah and Other Updates

Wow, there is much to report since I have been a slacker when it comes to blogging...here it goes!

Towards the end of May, I took a trip down to Utah for Davin's graduation and to visit with the family. As always, it was very enjoyable. Kearsten came to SLC to pick me up, and on the way to Ferron we stopped in to see Kyrenia and baby Aelinor - it was so nice to finally meet her! The drive home was a little strange - we were both quite tired as we had stayed up pretty late with Aunt V. the night before. Nevertheless, it made for an interesting drive!

We had to stop in Price to get supplies for Kearsten's baby shower on Friday - as always, the trip to WalMart took much longer than expected, but overall, I'm quite proud of us for getting out as soon as we did, especially since I was also shopping for a present for Kearsten and baby Gardner!

Luckily, we arrived in Ferron just in time to gobble down some dinner and head straight back over to Castle Dale for the graduation. It was held in the auditorium this year, which, despite a little confusion regarding this decision at first, it actually turned out quite nicely. JR Nelson, a long-time English teacher at Emery High, retired this year, and so a special tribute was paid to him at the graduation. I was very glad I could be there for that - he was a great teacher! They had members of the audience stand up who had him as a teacher, and there were quite a lot of us! In my family, he taught my mom, me, Kearsten and Davin! Anyway, it was kind of strange to realize it's been 7 years since my own graduation. Watching the whole thing, it felt like just yesterday when I was doing the same thing. I guess 7 years isn't a terribly long time, but wow, so much has happened! I'm very excited for Davin and what lays ahead of him now - he will be turning 19 in March and heading on a mission, so I think for now he's just going to work and relax and enjoy the time before that comes. He's such a good kid and years ahead of many his age in terms of maturity and spirituality - he's going to make a great missionary. Apparently he's quite popular for giving talks - all of the practice he's gotten lately is sure to help him when he's put on the spot while teaching people! I know I'm biased, but I've always thought that he is so amazing - he's going to have a wonderful influence on people throughout his life, and it's just very exciting to see him entering adulthood and venturing further into that journey!


The whole family at Davin's graduation. Poor Stetson had to crouch down a bit so he wasn't blocking me in the picture - he's getting so tall!

All of the siblings (from left to right): Neal (Kearsten's husband), Kearsten, Davin, MiKail, Stetson, Dalton. Sadly, Adam wasn't able to be with us that weekend.

Friday, we spent most of the morning preparing for Kearsten's baby shower. We had a small group present, which probably worked out well since we held it at my parents' house in their newly remodeled living room. The shower went very well - we just ate and visited and watched Kearsten open presents. She also wanted everyone to write down some advice and a baby name. One of the funniest things I heard was to teach the baby to say "daddy" first so that when he wakes up in the middle of the night, he'll ask for dad instead of mom!

I was very nostalgic over the weekend, so since it was raining all day Saturday (odd for Utah - I must have brought the rain with me) we watched home videos all day. It was so much fun to see all of us when we were young! We just laughed and laughed at all the different things we did! Kearsten was so embarrased with herself - she was quite the energized, boy-crazy tomboy when she was younger, and I don't know if it was more funny to watch her in the videos or watch her watching herself!

It was great to go to the home ward on Sunday and see several people there. Unfortunately I was feeling quite ill that day, so I left early and wasn't able to chat longer, especially with my good friend Katie Seamons who I haven't seen for several years! We left shortly after church to go to Holden so I wasn't able to see her again before leaving...I was frustrated that I had been feeling sick, and also frustrated that the time goes by so quickly when I go home to visit - I just never get to see everyone I want to.

My family has a tradition of going to Holden every Memorial Day - this is the town that my dad grew up in and the place that the Bennett family has been based in since they immigrated from Wales in the 1860s. We always have a big family barbecue at my aunt's house on Sunday night, and although there weren't a ton of people there, it was nice to visit with those who were. On Monday we head up to the cemetary to pay our respects. The family went to the Veteran Services, but as I still wasn't feeling very well, I slept in and went up later. I have always loved visiting my grandparents' graves and other relatives. I also always make a point of visiting the graves of my grandparents who came here from Wales. I know that ancestors are very important in many peoples' lives, but I think due to my love of history and my family history, it's always been very important to me to honor their memory and show gratitude for what life they've provided for me. I am named after my dad's mother (Colona - my first name). I never met her in this life, but I feel a very close connection to her, and I always try to remember to honor her name and live up to it. As for my grandpa, he died when I was twelve, but he was a wonderful grandfather. He was always so patient and kind - I loved spending time with him. As I sat by their graves, I couldn't help but get a little emotional. I know we all have our shortcomings in life and our challenges, but I hope that I am making them proud - I hope that they, and all of my ancestors, are pleased to have me as one of their posterity. It's always a wonderful feeling to be so close to them - it's times like these when I can feel their presence and I am grateful for that.

Holden has a wonderful tradition - every Memorial Day the scouts of the town host a luncheon. Most of the residents contribute some food to the lunch and then everyone pays money for the lunch that helps with boy scout expenses. This year, it was the young women who hosted the event to earn money for girls camp. Without fail, my dad always runs into several people he knows - it's fun to listen to their stories, and I think it's probably a lot of fun for him too. After lunch we went to Fillmore to place some flowers on my cousin Pat's grave - I'm glad we went. I hadn't been to his grave ever before, and no one had been there yet, so our flowers were the first. Before heading home, we got some delicious shaved ice - the ideal treat for summer!

It was hard to say goodbye to the family, but thankfully, they'll be up here in August! Oh, one major item - I finally met my dog Mikka! She bonded with me pretty quickly over the weekend, and oh is she cute! She loves to be held, whether you're standing up or sitting down, and she just has such a fun personality! It's going to be wonderful when she's finally up here!

The picture's kind of blury, but this is one of the few I took - she loves to curl up in a little ball on your lap like this!

While we were still in Ferron, all the siblings but Davin went to change sprinklers one morning. Due to the rain and obviously, the sprinklers, we all came back quite muddy.

Especially in the back - Kearsten definitely got the worst of it! I'm really not sure why she thought shorts would be a good idea!


I rode back to SLC with my aunt and uncle, and they dropped me off with my in-laws. On Tuesday, Kyrenia came out to Magna with Aelinor, so I was able to spend several hours with the two of them and Yvonne. Since I was still feeling nostaglic, I looked through several picture albums there while we visited. Of course, I had to hit up Cafe Rio before going home - oh and it was delicious! I miss it so much!

Me and my adorable neice, Aelinor!

Isn't she adorable?

By the time I got home Tuesday, I was happy to be home, but of course, sad to leave family. I absolutely love Seattle, but the hardest part is not being able to see family as much, especially since neices and nephews are now coming!

As for other news, Adam and I finally bought a barbecue! We've been talking about doing this for awhile, but Monday night when we got home from work, we were just craving some good bbq. So, off we went to buy a grill. Of course, we bought charcoal - beyond the fact that it was less expensive than propane, it just tastes so much better! I love that charcoal flavor! This was the first time I personally have bbq'd something - it was quite a success! I think we've barbecued 4 times already this week, and summer is just beginning!

Preparations are being made - the grill and the charcoal are ready to go!

The enormous bbq set - Adam got it for free for ordering some office supplies - sweet!

Ahhh - grilled meat! Is there anything quite like it?

And of course, what would a post be without an update on my garden?

The carrots, spinach and peas. I was able to eat some fresh spinach this week - very tasty!

The onions, broccoli and lettuce - I also had some of the lettuce this week - how exciting!

The roma tomato plant and herbs - parsley, cilantro, mint and lavender. I don't think the lavender is going to make it - the only shoot that came up was eaten by something. :(

The flowers in my window boxes.

The fence/wall on one side of our yard - I'm always fascinated by how many shades of green are in this one area of the yard.

I'm so glad it's summer! It's been nice to have the sunny days, but I hope we have at least one rainy day soon - the grass is fading a bit!

I also have an update on the medieval faire we attended yesterday, but as this post is already gargantuan, I'll post about that later this week. Until next time...