Oldies but Goodies!

 When I heard the Boston concert hadn't sold out and tickets were going for $20 each I flew to Smiths to buy some tickets.  I was so excited to surprise Del.  I like Boston, but he LOVES them!  I called our friends Jeremy and Cherri Porter, and they wanted to go, too.

I had just said to Del, "I wonder who the opening band will be?" when I heard the into to The Grand Illusion start playing.  "Awesome!" I thought.  "Someone's going to play some STYX hits!"  And then I saw the name, Dennis DeYoung, and started jumping up and down yelling, "It's STYX!  The opening band is STYX!"  I couldn't have been happier!  I am a huge fan and had no idea they were touring together.  That's what happens when you quickly go buy tickets 4 hours before the concert.  Sweet!

 We saw several friends there, and took pictures with Geri and Evan Holmstead to send to our daughters, Maren and Lauren on their missions.  We wanted them to know their parents are still cool!

 Both groups were so awesome!  Best concert I've ever been to, and there was something incredibly magical about laying on a blanket staring up at the stars while my favorite bands sang to me.  Wow!

 

 

I wanted a t-shirt so bad, but they were $55, so I passed, but when we left we ran into a guy in the parking lot selling seconds for $10.  I asked him for a medium and then decided to get a large so Del could wear it too.

 Unfortunately, it wasn't until I got home that I realized he gave me a small instead of a large, and I didn't want it tight, so Emma was thrilled to get a concert T from Boston's 40th anniversary tour.

Goodbye for now

 After being apart for 20 years my wonderful grandparents are back together again.

Grandma's funeral was very nice, and I was asked to give the life sketch and share stories from her children and grandchildren.  That was a little nerve-wracking because nothing was written out very well, and I was frantically calling my mom for stories and writing as Del drove to the funeral.  It all turned out perfect, though, and the spirit was there.

Grandma Thompson was a wonderful woman and I'm so happy to have been born into the Thompson and Nielson families. 

 

 I hadn't realized that my Nielson and Thompson grandparents are buried so close to each other.  Susan is standing at Vernal and Dora's grave, and the rest of the group is at the Thompson grave.

 As we drove through Union I asked my parents to stop and take a picture in front of the Union sign.  Union has been a part of my life for so many years, but who knows if I'll be back?  Lots of wonderful memories were made there.

 The reception was very nice.  Becky had printed about 100 pictures of grandma and grandpa, and we put them all in frames and displayed them on the stage.  Becky let everyone take the pictures (minus the borrowed frames) home to enjoy.  There were many of the pictures that my mom's siblings had never seen, and they really seemed to enjoy looking at them all and were very happy to be able to take some home.

 Charlene made it to the funeral, but she wasn't strong enough to go to the reception, so her daughter Debbie stood in the picture of the siblings.  Aunt Penny couldn't attend because she is caring for her daughter-in-law, who is quadriplegic, while her son is stationed abroad in the Army.  Two of mom's cousins are in the picture on the left, front and back row.

Like Father, Like Daughter

  For as long as I've known Del he's had a bad habit of making what I call his Who face, puffing up his upper lip and flaring his nostrils. It's not particularly attractive, and I think he looks like a Who from Dr. Seuss's Whoville.  I caught a picture of it the other day and Emma saw it when she was looking through the pictures on my phone.  Well, since Emma has always been a daddy's girl, she immediately decided she could make the face, too.  Sure enough.  Almost as silly looking.

 

 

Father's Day in Inkom

 This was the first year ever that Del picked out gifts for our fathers, so I was pretty proud of him.  OK, it's not like he went out on a limb and got something wild and crazy.  I bought him the blue shirt on the left for his Father's Day present, so he picked it out in red for his dad and a matching blue for my dad, but he did a great job on fit and color.  His dad loved it!

 We spent the evening in Inkom, and I'd forgotten how pretty it is out there.  I took some pictures to send to Maren of the beauties of Inkom. Happy Father's Day to some really wonderful men!

 

Heroes, small and tall

 We were devastated to hear the news that my cousin Kolby Thompson's 6 year old daughter had been in a riding lawnmower accident, which nearly severed her leg.  We joined them in praying for her but found out the next morning the doctors had to amputate her leg above the knee.  Such a blow, and at such a young age.  I wasn't sure how she would be able to deal with it.  Amazingly enough, however, Chelsey has been a real trooper!  Her positive attitude and brave smile has won over the town, and they are doing what they can to help the family.

 Chelsey and Grandma got pictures taken in their matching wheelchairs.  Apparently, Chelsey wanted to race but Grandma was a little too tired (she passed away about 2 weeks later).

 The week after the accident I attended an event at Fort Hall for a soldier, Phillip Baldwin, who had lost both legs in Afghanistan.  A wonderful group raised the money to build him a handicapped accessible home, and the head of the organization, a veteran and amputee himself, came to speak.  So did Larry Echohawk, who is now a member of the Quorum of the Seventies in the LDS church, and it was neat to be able to shake his hand.  He presented the soldier with a check for $10,000 from the church to spend on a gazebo and furniture.

 I talked to the man in charge of the event, Justin Bond, and when he heard about Chelsey he wanted to be able to talk to her parents about prosthetic limbs and meet her.  He was anxious to help if he could and was so nice.  Heroes usually are.

Irish Adventures

 Chris sent us some beautiful pictures of Ireland, although he didn't send any explanations of where he was.  Hmmm...   On his last day in Ireland he got to go surfing, which was pretty exciting news, especially for Emma, who is incredibly jealous.