Sallie Woolfenden

This is Sallie Woolfenden.  She lived in Pinetop when

we all had little children.  She actually came to my house

and stayed with our children when Lee was born.  She

thought we could name Lee "Stormy" because it

rained on that October night.  We didn't go with Stormy

but that caused us to think of "October".  October Lee

Merrill Brooks is Lee's full name.

Sallie always makes me feel like the rough

places are smoothed out when she is around.

She lives in Las Vegas and makes 

occasional trips back to her native Arizona.

I am happy she considers me her friend.

She told me this little story:  she used to

wear dresses that had fluffy skirts with

can cans.  She had a little boyfriend and

they would sit on a bench and hold hands

under her big fluffy skirt.  That's it.  It

was just the way she told it.  Made me laugh.

David

It has been five months since David was

released as Bishop.  We have stopped talking

about it all together.  I was asking him all the

time how he was doing.  He has moved on.

I have to admit that it was an adjustment 

for me to let another man take his place.

I didn't want someone to be better than

David.  But even that is gone.  Bishop Beus

conducted a funeral yesterday and I loved

everything he said.  He is my Bishop.

I love how the church is this way.  We

change callings but we are not diminished

or elevated.  We are just servants in the

kingdom.  New callings require adjustments

and adaptation.  David is working with

the Young Men again and all is well.

This is him in his Jeep.  He is pulling our

trailer with a load of wood.  It was a

beautiful fall morning and I was happy to

have him all to myself with the sound

of a chain saw and a fresh load of wood

and the autumn leaves in full color.

I am a sane woman because he is my husband.

I do love him.

Fall Visitors

I read plenty of picture books with grandchildren

going to Grandpa and Grandma's house.  Somehow

I never picture myself as the Grandma.  But that

is who I am.  That is who we are.  Here are some

shots of grandchildren, via their parents, who came

to our house this fall.

Daisy and Rocky.  How cool is it that 

their Grandpa meet them at the door on

Halloween!

 Fall Festival Parade.  That is David with Laine, Mike,

Bode, Ben in the back of Bigfoot.  Then Lee, Daisy, and Rocky.

Tim is in the drivers seat.

We loved being in the parade with these guys.  It

was a great weekend.

 Ben, same weekend.  He picked a dandelion

and put it in a cup of dirt for me. Love.

 Candy throwers.  Daisy and Laine.

 More candy throwers:  Bode, Mike and Ben.

Word of advise:  Know what is going on.

We missed the deadline for entry but in a small

town people are kind so we didn't disappoint our

grandchildren by not being in the parade.  Then

read your parade instructions.  No candy throwing

from moving vehicles.  Second possible disappointment.

But we borrowed two wagons from the Toronto's and

the kids threw candy out of them.

We really enjoyed walking down 260 with our

grandchildren.  

 Bode's drawing for the cover of his

school's year book

 This dang picture!  It won't rotate.  But this is Jett.

He is one of my farmers.  This is him in the

Raspberrys.  He is a nice little boy.

 Melanie.  She had been playing with a

stuffed pillow that had this tape across a 

hole to keep the little balls of stuffing inside.

I think she must have laid on it.  Made me

laugh.

 Megan, Melanie and Jett picking my apples.

They came up for a week when their mom

needed to be with her sister who had a

premie baby.  They worked so hard for us.

They picked apples and stacked wood.

They helped get some things done.  I was

so pleased.

 This is their family.  Megan carved them

all.  So cute.

 They were here for my preschool.  Jett

was a student and Megan and Mel were

teachers aids.  We had a great two days of

preschool! I wish I could hire them.  They just

paid attention to the kids and the kids

ate it up! 

This is a sweet picture of Mel reading

to some of the children.

I always have to attach my disclaimer:  I

am a great grandma for three days then I

start to wear out.  I try to stay patient

and involved and I hope they don't notice

too much.  When they go I still have such

mixed feelings.  I need my house back but

I need them too.  

David and I always say if they lived closer

we could see them more often and we wouldn't

have to cram so much in that we wear out.

They could just come and go and come and go.

That is our dream.

Kim

I have several good friends from my growing up

in Show Low.  Kim Seaman is one of my best!

She retired from teaching this last spring and she

and her husband, Mike, have left for an LDS

Mission to Kansas City, Missouri.  They will 

church facility maintenance workers.  Their

call said they would be that and "whatever else

your mission president asks you to be".

I think I have mentioned this many times

before, maybe not on my blog so much,

but Kim was a savior for me.  Why she 

chose me as a best friend I don't know.

Our backgrounds are so different.  We did

a lot of laughing together.  Laughing makes

for good friends I know.  She laughs easy.

Her parents were good to me also.  I realize

now they thought I needed that support.  Or

they knew I did.  I owe them much.  I

stayed the course because of people like

Kim and her parents.

I realized over this last couple of months

that Kim is a Show Low favorite.  She taught

a lot of children which endeared her to

their parents and because Mike was a

Bishop and then a Stake President she

was directly involved in many people's lives.

I know her parents are pleased.  They were

icons in Show Low.  She has honored them

with her life.

I'm far from the only one that will miss her.

Side note:  this is Show Low Creek looking

north.  There is a spot about a 100 yards from 

here that I learned to swim in.  It was a pool

of water and deep enough for a swimming

hole.  My sister, Lynne, took me with her when

I was 6-7 probably and helped me learn to swim.

I remember her friend, Judy Jacobs, standing at the

waters edge and saying, "Lynne, she's swimming,

she's swimming".  

Shortly after that further upstream a local

rancher turned pig farmer fenced his pigs

by the creek and mom wouldn't let us go the

swimming hole anymore.  I enjoyed thinking

about that when Kim and I walked over the

bridge at Show Low Creek.

Blue Ridge Football Fall 2014

Blue Ridge has one more game to play this fall.  It is next

week and it is in the playoffs!  If you had said they will, at

least, make it to the playoffs this year people would have

laughed at you.

We always knew the day was coming when Paul Moro would

retire or leave.  He did.  He took a job in the valley and his

era at Blue Ridge was over.  We have a new coach, Jake Belshi.

He has a new staff.....mostly coaches already in the system

and a few that once played for Blue Ridge.  

The season started with a couple of terrible losses.  I think most

teams here in eastern Arizona were looking forward to

creaming Blue Ridge.  But a funny thing happened on the way

to that.  After those initial losses BR got better on both

sides of the ball.  Their first win of the season was against

Show Low.  Show Low was supposed to cream Blue Ridge.

But we beat them in overtime.  It was the best game ever!

It was fun to be there.  

They ended up with a 5 win / 5 loss season and made

it to the playoffs.  But their quarterback broke some

bones in his foot this last weekend and is out.  So they will

go to Sahaurita and have no chance of winning.

I am sorry the season is coming to an end.  BR football

has changed but it is still part of our town.  I think people

are  OK with this change and with this

season.  I think it was a successful season and I look

forward to next year.  I just hate waiting.  

Good, Better and Best

I started canning this year in August.  That is when

corn was coming off.  I canned some and froze some.

Since then I have canned something every week.

  I got up yesterday morning with the intent of

finishing off two boxes of apples, a grow box full of

beets, and tackle 50 pounds of potatoes.  About 30 minutes

into preparation for the apples I was done.  There was

nothing left in me to do anything else.

I went down to my storage room and looked at

my bottles and bottles of canned stuff hoping to

be inspired to carry on.  I couldn't rally.

So I took my apples, potatoes and freshly picked

beets over to a friend who I knew would love

to have them to can and said  "Here, they are yours, I'm done".

I don't know if this is the new me I only know that

what has brought satisfaction just isn't doing it anymore.

Maybe that is how I will know it is time to walk away.

What does satisfy is family and friends.  

Ya, family and friends.

Good ~ Better ~ Best

Dallin H. Oaks

“We should begin by recognizing the reality that just because something is good is not sufficient reason for doing it.  The number of good things we can do far exceeds the time available to accomplish them.  Some things are better than good, and these are the things that should command priority attention in our lives. . .. “

“We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better or best because they develop faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and strengthen our families.”

“Good, Better, Best” Ensign, November 2007,  p. 104-108