My baby

Yes, she is out growing me!

And Grandma Reay too!

Savanna had a choir concert on her next-to-the-last day of school. It was so cute. I mean she was so cute.

Seventh grade choir has it's very own sound. The boys can still sing soprano but are so embarrassed by this fact that they choose to sing a low monitone sound.

The girls are giggly and don't dare sing too loud for fear someone will hear them.

I love it! (I'm also glad that I'm not their teacher!)

Stuck!

I realize it doesn't really look to stuck, but old Brownie's transfer case is shot and so that means no 4-wheel drive! (at least that is what Alma said) I was trying to be so careful. Technically, I really shouldn't be getting stuck in May, but it has rained so much that I have been stuck twice now! Cody got the tractor and pulled me out. How embarrassing.
I am not complaining about the rain one bit. Every day it rains is one less I have to move sprinkler pipe!

Last day of school!

I wish I could have gotten the picture a second sooner so you could see her click her heels! It was priceless.
Sierra did love her Sophamore year but there is something magic about the last day. She came home, yearbook in tow, just as happy as she left! Lucky me!

Practice Hike

Savanna, Shandee Richman, Sierra and I headed out for a hike.

It was a little chilly, but once we got going, we took off our jackets and had a great time. We parked at Baxter's water trough and headed west. We ended up in the hills behind Mt. Sterling. The clouds rolled in and it waited to rain on us until we were back to the car. We are practicing for a 50 hike to the Teton's this summer.

I hope I make it!

Bulls

Tough guys!

These are the power houses on the ranch.

We have several Angus bulls and a couple of Charolais bulls. This is their pen. They are rough on it. I should have taken pictures of the bent succor rod and gates that they bend when they get to "rough-housing" and I mean ROUGH.

We buy them when they are about 18 months old and keep them until they are 4 years old. After that, they get lazy and too big to do a good job. They are weighing in at 1800-2100 pounds each.

They aren't "mean" like the stereotype, but they do stand to be watched. They aren't the easiest to handle if they are alone but in a heard of cows they put their head down and walk down the road--most of the time.

Diary of a spring day

6:00-7:00 a.m. I drag myself out of bed to go read my scriptures (I'm in Moroni and Exodus) and study my YW lesson. This is a great part of my day-- I highly recommend it!

7:00-8:00 a.m. We eat breakfast in shifts because we all leave at different times but I did make Sierra and I sweet potatoe pancakes this morning with buttermilk syrup, which was delicious! (sorry Savanna)
Bryan opted for cold cereal and toast.
I cleaned up the kitchen, put the last load of laundry in the dryer, made the bed and picked up the living room and left for Paradise.

8:00-9:00 a.m. I went straight to Charlie's and caught a horse that is headed to Idaho, fed the bull pen and the other horses, and waited for the truck driver to show up.

9-11:00 a.m. Alma and I went to the East in Brownie, the flat bed, to feed. Cody followed us a horseback. Some of the cows aren't bringing their calves in to be fed so he thought they were a little "nylon deficient" and should be roped and tagged. (good excuse) Alma and I fed, fixed a little fence, and then tried to head for home. The 4-wheel drive wasn't working so we got the truck in a bad spot and ended up leaving Brownie there until it dries up enough that we won't slide off the hill! We had to call Shawn for a ride.

11-12:30 p.m. The three of us sorted the feeding bulding and the pea-viner for the biggest yearling steers to be worked through the shute.

12:30-1 p.m. Lunch with Marj! Delicious pork chops and baked potatoes today!

1-3:30 p.m. We worked 55 yearlings to be ready when Bryan is ready to send them to pasture. Cody didn't even get dirty! I went home after that to my "other job" taking care of my daughters and Bryan when he arrives at home. I love that job too! It was a good day!

Road Trip, revisited!

This is at the summit of Teton Pass looking toward Jackson.

We stayed in a room at the Wyoming Inn that we haven't stayed in before. This tub was fabulous!

On our way into Jackson this herd of about thirty buffalo crossed the road in front of us so we stopped to see them. There were two calves with them.

This was the worst part of our trip! We were trying to go over South Pass. It was snowing so hard and we couldn't see very well. They don't use salt on the roads so they were very slippery and it was not a fun drive. Thankfully, once we left Riverton, it quit snowing so we could make it to Jackson much easier.

Cheesy cousins

We went to tell Colten good-bye before he went on his mission to Oklahoma. Unfortunately, he had gone bowling so we visited with the rest of the family. Chase and Savanna are about nine months apart. They were being cheesy for my camera.
Good Luck, Colten!

Kite flying

Savanna and Emily, our neighbor, went to fly a kite. They were not very successful. The kite ended up in a tree, over the wire, and crash landing more than once into the ground--typical Charlie Brown kite flying! They did get it flying long enough for me to get this picture!

Feeding cows

Sierra and Savanna are good help when it comes to feeding. Ok, so they don't exactly love it, but I am always glad to have them near!

Branding day on the East

Big Al--our best truck driver

Driving the "girls" to the corral.

Cody, Bryan, Alma and Shawn all helping load nine cows and calves on the trailer.

Branding day is a good day. When we got up that morning, there was 2 inches of new snow on the ground and it was only about 29 degrees--not exactly what we expected. It melted fast and we were able to get the job done without any hitches. We branded close to 100 head of calves.

I love the summer self-feeding program!

Going for a ride

This little girl is a twin. She and I were headed to my dad's so she could have a "goat mother". She only weighs about 40 pounds and she kept trying to get on the seat while I was driving!

Mother's day

Rachel Summers, Jenny Nielsen, Katie White, Savanna Summers, Karlie Norman, Stacie White, Ashley Summers,
Sierra Summers, Marjean Summers

Vickie White, Pam Norman, Bonnie Summers, Diane Summers

MarJean Summers

I had a fabulous Mother's day this year!
Bryan spoiled me with a new skirt and blouse and then a couple of cute outfits.
Sierra gave me some lovely smelling soaps and lotions, and Savanna gave me a "heart attack" and gave me a coupon book for some great things!
Bryan spoke in church, we went to listen to Colten Mortensen talk in church before his mission, and then we went to the White's for a turkey dinner and it was delicious!
Jackson did call and he was so busy that he only talked for a few minutes and then said he would call back because he had an appointment to keep! It was so good to hear his voice--even if was short!

Dan

When Sharell hired this kid to work for us a week before his death, we were so glad to have another hand in a busy time.



He wanted to rope everything.

He had lots of good stories--some true and some exaggerated--but we loved them all. He was willing to do the hard stuff and the fun stuff.

We are sad to see Dan go on to Nebraska, but we are glad for the chance to know him. Best wishes on you new adventure, Dan

BYU Women's Conference

Vickie, Marcy, and me at the Marriot Center.
Kelly, Joyce, and my mom sat behind us during the opening session.

I love going to Women's Conference! It is such a refreshing and uplifting change. This year I brought Vickie Huish and Marcy Wiberg with me.

We left home early Thursday morning and arrived in Provo in time to get a good parking place and a seat in the Marriot Center. After listening there, we each went to different classes. One of the classes that I was in, I met a lady who's brother-in-law is the counselor in Jackson's mission presidency! I felt it was a tender mercy just for me.

I love the way Heavenly Father sends those just when I need them.

We stayed Thursday night in Springville in a motel that wasn't the greatest, but we made the best of it by jumping on the beds, discussing life and lessons learned and just enjoying each other's company. Friday started out snowy and cold but by the time it was over and we headed home, it had cleared and was sunny which is just the way we felt--refreshed and ready to face our lives again!

My new window

We have a window in the front of our house that is about 8 feet X 4 feet.
I love watching life through it.
It is a challenge to keep birds from hitting it and occasionally a rock hits it by accident or on purpose. It had a small bullseye on it for about 18 months and then it started to crack in all directions. It is double paned so I wasn't too concerned at first, but then it got out of hand. These four guys came to take out the old one and install a new one. It was amazing to watch them do this. The window weighed several hundred pounds because it took them all to lift it. It only took about half an hour for the whole process--which included cleaning the new one! It looks so good.

Sierra's Prom

This year the Jr. Prom was held at the Riverwood's in Logan. Brian Sessions took Sierra. He is a Junior so they got to do the Prominade. A real princess spin here!

Isn't she darling?! Where have the last 16 years gone? She used to dress up like a princess every day. I had a hard time getting her to wear regular clothes.

Now look at her!

There were 4 couples in their group and they had a great time together.

Good friends make all the difference.

I'm glad I get to spend eternity with my best friend.