Sam has finished his Eagle project...YEAH!!

For his Eagle project Sam decided to paint a map of the United States on the play ground at Tukes Valley Primary school (where Luke goes to school). This is what it looked like before.

First it had to be blown clear of all debris with blowers.

Then it had to be power washed.

Then the stencil was laid out and the outline of the states was chalked in. That was all done on Monday!!

On Tuesday we gathered to begin painting. Sherwin Williams donated all the paint and shirts for the painters to wear!! So if you need paint for anything we recommend you buy from them!!

Here is Hannah cutting out the stencils for stenciling the initials of the states.

More painting!! It was coming together very nicely.

Then on Wednesday it rained and washed away the chalk. So we covered it up and waited.

On Saturday we were finally able to finish up the Eastern states. (This cute girl is Sarah, a friend of Sam's that he met at EFY and she came down from Kent to visit her uncle and was there to help on Saturday!! This is probably a whole other blog!!) They finished painting, outlined all the states and stenciled on the letters.

It was not all work!! There was some playing going on also!!

And here is Sam with the finished project!! It looks really good. And it is so nice to have it done!! We are very proud of him. He worked hard and kept his crews working. Now we just have to finish up that last merit badge and he will be an Eagle scout!! YEAH!! One down, three to go!! Millie

What can we do with these blackberries?

Monday after family night we went out and picked two bowls of blackberries growing wild along the road. Then on Tuesday I made two pies. One in the oven and another that went in the fridge. And I must say they were mighty delicious!!

And what good is blackberry pie without a scoop of icecream?

Isaac and Luke enjoying their pie.

Sam licking the plate clean!!

Then tonight the kids picked another bowl full and we made milkshakes!! David enjoying his!!

Plates are not the only thing Sam licks clean!!

And as you can see Isaac and Luke really enjoyed theirs!! We look forward to picking more and making jam and maybe a cobbler and whatever else we can find a recipe for!! Millie

The Boys!!

I love this picture of Orey and Doug sitting on my dad's (Frank) lap at the Mechams. I do not know which baby is which!! But I love Dad's red stripped shirt and there are those curtains again!!

Orey and Doug standing in front of Rosie!! Who did not love that old volkswagen van?

This is my favorite picture!! They look like little men. Doug is on the left and Orey on the right. What cuties!! This love seat is now at my parents house and once again those curtains are the background. Are you getting tired of the old pictures? Maybe I'll take a break from them, they are just so fun. Millie

More old photos and memories!!

What a cute bunch of kids. They are Maudie, Donna Faye, Millie and Cindi. In the front are Orey, Marjorie and Doug. This must have been the picture taking place. I have found a few pictures in front of this window and those curtains at the Mechams.

This was at our house in Alaska. Donna Faye, Maudie Millie, Cindi and Orey. Lorna is the baby. It must be around 1972 or 73.

This is on the sidewalk in front of the Mechams in Wendell (another place where photos seem to have been taken) Maudie with kitten, Millie, Cindi with the cute little bun on her head and Orey. I loved that willow tree in the background. We spent a lot of time under that tree and in that tree.

This is in the yard at our house in Boise. Maudie and Millie are the horse riders and Cindi is the one with little clothes on!! After my Grandparents (the Eisenhauers) divorced they both tended to give me the same gifts for my birthdays and Christmas. I guess they still thought the same. Hence the two horses.

Now who might these lovely ladies be?

This week I am tackling the cleaning out of the room we call the library but is never actually used because I have stored too much stuff in there!! While cleaning out some things I came across a bag of pictures. Aren't these some lovely ladies all dressed up and with their babies in their arms.

And look at these beauties!! They are in back Julie Ann, Julia Fellows( I knew her as Grandma Fellows), Grandma Donna, Nancy with Marjorie and in the front Cindi with the little purse and hat. Maudie is the taller one with the hat and the lovely girl in the red shoes is Donna Faye. On the end is Millie. How fun!! And you have got to love the curtains in the background.

THANK YOU MAUDIE!!!!

I do want to thank my great aunt Maudie (meaning she is a great as in really good aunt not great as in a generation back aunt) for letting me know who guard2004_77 is!! I have met Ashlee, Marc's wife and think she is great!! And I have read her blog by getting there through Maudie's blog!! So I just want to welcome her as a follower and hope to have a picture up there real soon so that I recognize it as her!! And now I can stop wondering and yes, because I have that bit of Mecham in me, stop worrying about who it is!! I do want to thank my great Aunt Maudie also for getting me into blogging and for all of you who blog so I can keep up with you and yours!! I wish we all lived closer so we could see each other and keep in touch personally but since we don't this is the next best thing. Love ya all!! Millie

Just out of curiosity...

I have noticed that I have a follower that I do not know. I have also noticed that they are following all the Vippermans, the Hardys, the Rios, and the Mechams. I have not been able to access their blog sight and they have no picture posted. Does anyone know who guard2004_77 is? I am just curious as to who they are and their interest in me and mine. I do not know why I find it disturbing to see that faceless silhouette on my follower list but it does. So if you have any idea who this person may be will you let me know? I would really appreciate it and can stop perseverating on it!!
Millie

A weekend in Hermiston

This weekend we went to Hermiston to visit with the Jorgensen clan. Saturday night we went to the never ending Umatilla County Fair and Rodeo parade!! Every time we thought it was through another group of horses would come down the street. We had fun and here are some pictures of happy parade goers.





Here are the boys all lined up to wave at pretty girls and grab candy as it was thrown.

Sunday we went to church and were there for Ben to be ordained an Elder. What a great thing to get to share with him and his family. Then we took some family photos at the house.

Grandma and Grandpa met us at the church.


Ben and his family.


Us and the soon to be Elder Jorgensen. We had a great weekend!! We are so proud of Ben and the choice he has made to serve in the Utah Salt Lake City mission. Millie

"Daisies have to be the friendliest flower"

Our field is full of daisies. I love daisies and this time of year when they are everywhere especially in our field and all the fields around. They are so sunny and friendly. Millie

The hat store at Seaside.

While on our way home from our beach camping trip we made a stop in Seaside to buy saltwater taffy, a must if you go to the beach. At this little mall we found the taffy we were looking for and Luke rode the carousel. It is sad to think that he is the only one young enough to want to ride the merry go round. We also spent some time in the "Hat Store". Here are some of our favorites.

Rob sporting a Far Far special. His dad wore hats like this all the time. Gives him a bit of a Swedish look.

They had all kinds of animal hats. Here is Rob in the mad moose hat!!

Luke wearing a very hairy hat!! This is way too much hair for such a little boy.

Luke in the birthday cake hat!! This was just a week after his 7th birthday.

And here's David wearing the hat the boys will be wearing at Hannah's wedding. No she is not engaged or even dating anyone but already has planned out what her brothers will be wearing when the time comes. The hats may not be white but they will be this style.

Isaac really wanted this hat but not enough to spend the money he saving up to buy a camera.

Well what can be said? These two are way too cool for comment!! Don't they look like the guy in the picture behind them? We did not buy any hats this day but sure had a fun time at the store.
Millie