Bill's Blog

2011-05-10T09:20:00.000-07:00

Charitable Giving, Food For Thought!

I gave a lesson on tithing Sunday and broadened the topic to giving. I found some very interesting information that I thought I would share.

The average person in the US gives away three and a half times as much money as the average French citizen, seven times as much as the average German, and 14 times as much as the average Italian.

The most charitable state is Utah, where people give approximately twice as much as the second leading state.

When people get richer, they tend to give more money away. When people give more money away, they tend to prosper.

People who volunteer do better financially. Is income driving up donations or are donations driving up income? The answer is both. When our country gets richer, people give more away. And as we give more away, that translates into economic growth for our country.

People who give to charity are 43 percent more likely than people who don't give to say they're very happy people. People who give blood are twice as likely to say they're very happy people as people who don't. People who volunteer are happier. You simply can't find any kind of service that won't make you happier. Givers are healthier, happier, and richer in this country.

Many churches are opposed to the concept of tithing saying it was abolished with the Law of Moses. On the average, Christians are giving about 2.5 percent of their income to churches, not ten. Weekly collection didn't even exist until the middle of the 19th century, when churches gave up selling or renting pews.

One spokesman said tithing remindes him of Martin Luther, father of the Protestant movement, who broke away from the Catholic church because it was selling indulgences: Promises of a quicker road to heaven in exchange for cash. Striped down to its basics, he says, "I don't think tithing is different than indulgences. What we see today, though, is a return to 'this-for-that religion,' give God this and God will give you that".

I thought it was interesting to find some churches have installed "Giving Kiosks" in the church where attendees can swipe their card and donate. Some call them God's ATMs.

2011-01-19T15:23:00.000-08:00

Windsor Castle - England

Just before Thanksgiving, I was asked to go to England to present the results of a study we conducted. I had never been so it was a great opportunity to see some of the history while I was there. I spent a day at Windsor Castle where the Monarch of England has lived for the last 1,000 years. It is very impressive as you will see from the few pictures here. It is hard to believe that one family can amass such a fortune. Of course, it helps when you can live on the taxes of the people.

It is hard to believe someone could build someting so magnificant with only hand tools. I have many stories and pictures someday when you have the time.

2009-10-18T07:12:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful afternoon, but we didn't catch a thing

2009-10-12T20:59:00.000-07:00

Some may say I have gotten carried away. Well, that happened a long time ago. I have been seeding and caring for several hundred Japanese maple trees for the past year and as you can see I have lots of them still growing in the garden. They had a farmer's market at work last month and I was surprised to sell just over 60 trees at $10 each. Of cours, at that price, I figure we have probably made about ten cents an hour for our time. However, I have had a good time learning all the way and this year it should go a lot easier. Yes, I am already collecting seeds again.

2009-09-14T12:38:00.001-07:00

Please note Stefanie and Will's announcement from the family dinner yesterday.

2009-07-19T16:31:00.000-07:00

We had a great visit with Nelson and Stefanie Barksdale today. Their youngest of 10 (Jared) is leaving for a mission and we attended his farewell. What a great family! Nelson has 20 grandchildren.

2009-07-10T10:04:00.000-07:00

Nathan earned the highest honor you can receive in Cub Scouts last night. He was awarded the Arrow of Light. It was a very special ceremony. Aprilyn and Brian also did a great job conducting the pack meeting. Everyone had a great time after the award ceremony playing games. Congratulations Nathan! I am a proud grandpa!

2009-06-29T11:23:00.000-07:00

Diane decided she wanted to learn how to replace brake shoes and asked me if I would teach her. If any of you need your brake shoes replaced let her know. She needs more practice.

2009-06-18T14:25:00.000-07:00

Just an update of gardening activities. The Red Japanese Maple seedlings are coming along. The garden is planted and with all the rain lately, things are growing like crazy.

2009-05-27T10:32:00.000-07:00

Todd and his friend Lynn have set up 5 bee hives next to our garden and I can't wait for some of that great honey. From all reports, the bees are doing great and enjoying their new home.

2009-05-26T13:52:00.000-07:00

It was great to spend this special day with Emily. She set a goal four years ago to go back to school and completing her undergraduate in psychology was the first step. Now on to a masters.

Congratulations Emily!

2009-04-20T10:33:00.000-07:00

Todd and his bee friends set up 5 bee hives next to our garden Saturday. It was interesting to watch the process. We won't have to worry about our garden plants getting pollinated this year.

2009-03-25T07:49:00.000-07:00

Last fall Diane and I collected a bunch of Japanese maple seeds and kept them in moist peat moss all winter. they are starting to sprout now and we have a bunch of seedlings from these beautiful trees. Unfortunately, it is too early to set them outside.

2009-03-25T07:30:00.000-07:00

Let the summer begin. There was enough warm weather this past week that Diane and I were able to get our new garden started. We tilled and installed a fence to keep the deer and other rodents out. Some say they are planting a recession garden this year because of tough times. I am growing a garden because I love to garden. So far we have planted grapes, black berries, rasberries, onions and lettuce. Hopefully, the snow will stop long enough for us to start the rest of our cool crops this weekend. The space is about 100' by 30'.

2009-02-28T19:49:00.000-08:00

It was a fun weekend with Nelson and Stefanie Barksdale at the cabin.

2009-02-13T19:13:00.000-08:00

Many people have roots in Kelsey, Texas. I for one am grateful for the oppourunity I had to spend part of my "growing up time" there. The train and depot were long gone by the time I arrived, but I have walked the old train bed many times and can only imagine what it was like in the early 1920s.

These pictures were taken by Mr. Barricklow between 1910 and 1918.

Train Depot Kelsey, Texas

HISTORY OF KELSEY, TEXAS

Kelsey, on Farm Road 1795 seven miles west of Gilmer in central Upshur County, was named for Dr. W. H. Kelsey, one of the earliest settlers in the county; a nearby creek also bears his name. During the antebellum period there were a number of large plantations in the area. In 1901 two brothers, John and Jim Edgar, of Andalusia, Alabama, founded a settlement of Mormonsqv on Kelsey Creek. After the colony was established, Mormons from all over the South flocked to the area. A school run by Mormon missionaries from Utah began operating in 1901, and a post office opened the next year. In 1910 the Marshall and East Texas Railway was built through the town, and Kelsey became a stop on the line. By 1911 Kelsey had five stores, a brick kiln, three sawmills, a shingle mill, a cotton gin, two blacksmith shops, a gristmill, and a school. A red brick school, the Kelsey Academy, was built that year and was operated as a public school staffed by Mormon missionaries. The town's economy was largely agricultural. Many of the residents depended on dairying for their livelihood, but cotton, grain, and truck farming also played an important role in the economy. Kelsey reached its largest size around 1917, when it had 750 residents; several hundred additional Mormons also lived in Enoch, a nearby community. Kelsey began to decline in 1917, when the railroad was abandoned. The post office closed the following year, and during the 1920s and 1930s many of the residents moved away. In the mid-1930s Kelsey had a church, several stores, a cemetery, and a number of houses. The population in 1938 was 350. After World War IIqv the decline continued. The school was consolidated with the Gilmer Independent School District, and by the mid-1960s all that remained of Kelsey was a church, a cemetery, and a store. In 1990 Kelsey was a dispersed community populated mostly by descendants of the original Mormon settlers. Some 200 inhabitants lived in the area in the 1990s. The population fell to fifty in 2000.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: G. H. Baird, A Brief History of Upshur County (Gilmer, Texas: Gilmer Mirror, 1946). T. Lindsay Baker, Ghost Towns of Texas (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1986). Dallas News, May 8, 1938. Doyal T. Loyd, History of Upshur County (Waco: Texian Press, 1987).
Christopher Long

2009-02-10T09:25:00.000-08:00

Kim and Chris Bradshaw married Feb. 6. We love you Kim and wish you the best! See more pictures at: http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1

2009-02-10T08:58:00.000-08:00

We had a great time at the cabin after Kim's wedding. Unfortunately, I didn't get pictures of everyone. Several enjoyed the 1.2 mile sled run down the road and being towed back up on snowmobiles for another run. Others enjoyed rolling the snowmobile. I forgot to tell them to stay on the beginner trail. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

2009-02-01T21:26:00.000-08:00

It doesn't get much better than this. Blake and I had a great time on top of the world snowmobiling yesterday.

2009-01-04T15:44:00.000-08:00

Several of us took off for the cabin this weekend. Some braved the 1.2 mile sled run down the road, some went shooting and some went snowmobiling. I was trying out our new snowmobile and ended up pinned underneath with no way to get out. Fortunately, Blake heard me yelling for help and came and pulled it off of me. I should have had him take a picture. Fortunately, I only sprained my thumb - lucky day for me.

2008-12-26T22:41:00.000-08:00

We played games, opened presents, ate, and built gingerbread houses with lots of family and lots of fun. To see all the pictures, go to:

http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/20081225Christmas#

2008-11-05T11:24:00.000-08:00

Fireball

During the cousins reunion, we played a traditional game of fireball. Below are some pictures of the game.

2008-11-02T08:15:00.000-08:00

Diane and I went to Kelsey, Texas to a reunion for all of my first cousins on Mother's side. It was a fun time visiting and catching up with everyone.

2008-10-19T20:07:00.000-07:00

Everyone carved their own pumpkin, we went for a hike through the woods, and took turns on the 4-wheeler. As you can see from the trees, it was a beautiful day in every way.

2008-10-19T20:03:00.000-07:00

Spiders and pumpkins were a hit!

2008-10-19T19:33:00.000-07:00

The boys and girls pitched pitched tents and had a great sleep over. Who is having the most fun? It is hard to tell.

2008-10-19T19:29:00.000-07:00

Friday night we were honored to have the latest married witch, Stefanie Hatch, stop by for a visit during our cousins Halloween overnight party. She told some scary stories, taught the kids some Halloween songs and games. Afterwards, we had carmel apples for desert.

Thanks Stefanie!

2008-10-17T09:07:00.000-07:00

I have been planning to create a plant propagation unit for a long time and finally completed it last night. As many of you know I have been crazy about plants for a long time. This is a pretty simple system, but using some technology to improve the success rate of growing plants from cuttings. Where I work there are flower beds with hundreds of roses and I have been wanting to take cuttings from some of them. Yesterday was the day. If this works, we will have some beautiful new roses for our flower beds next Spring.

2008-10-05T20:17:00.000-07:00

Another great heart attack breakfast prepared by the famous Heart Attack Cheff - Jerry Mack Grubbs. We ate and listened to conference together.

2008-09-21T19:20:00.000-07:00

We are counting the days until the pumpkin party this year. Don't forget!! If you want to spend the night Friday night, Oct. 17, we will be going up in the afternoon or after work that evening. If you perfer, you may join us Saturday for the day. We will be carving the pumpkins Saturday early afternoon.

We were at the cabin this weekend and the color in the trees is already amazingly beautiful. Unfortunately, it will probably be mostly gone by the party, but we will still have a great time.

As you can see, Diane is getting excited!

2008-09-14T21:16:00.000-07:00

We had the Grubbs Family Dinner at our home today. As always, we had great food and good times together. Diane went all out with sweet and sour chicken. Natalie made the fancy birthday cake. It was so nice we hated to eat it. After dinner we spent some time outside and enjoyed the beautiful fall weather.

2008-09-09T10:47:00.000-07:00

I have taken hundreds of pictures of this waterfall and probably will never take a better one than this, but that won't stop me from trying.

2008-09-03T08:19:00.000-07:00

Why I love Durango

2008-09-03T07:28:00.000-07:00

I took a picture of the front of our house this morning as I left for work and couldn't help but be amazed at the difference from when we moved in. I thought I would share the contrast. The home is still badly in need of paint, but we have certainly made progress with the yard.

2008-09-03T07:00:00.000-07:00

We took our bikes to Durango and rode the Old Lime Creek Road again like we did during the family reunion there. It was a beautiful day and I wish all our family had been able to enjoy the experience with us. There is something very renewing and rewarding to the sole to experience such natural beauty.

2008-08-17T17:02:00.000-07:00

While I was on a high adventure hike in the Uintas, Diane was home drying some beautiful appricots she picked. As Aprilyn mentioned, it is time for fall canning/drying once again. I don't know if my kids have good memories of canning season at our house or not, but we put up several things including green beans, peaches, pears, corn, tomatoes, grape juice and of course, strawberry jam. We probably still have some of those jars of food buried deep in our storage. We probably even have some jars of food DuRell put up years ago. Since eating was a family affair, we thought canning should be a family affair too. It was usually long days and in to the night before the project was complete, but together, we put up a lot of food. If you counted the cost of your time, perhaps it was not "profitable", but it was something we could all pitch in and do together. Perhaps lessons were learned in the process. Perhaps not. I still have good memories of sitting around at Grannie's home in the summer snapping green beans for canning. Neighbors would drop in and pick up a bowl of beans and start snapping as they visited and caught up on the news from each other. I learned that what I considered hard work was and enjoyable social experience for others.

I can see it all now if families were inclined to do home canning. Each person would have an IPOD plugged into their ears listening to their own music. This senario misses out on one of the blessings of canning together as a family.

2008-08-17T16:43:00.000-07:00

The Uintas are still as beautiful as they always were. Nathan and I took off Friday after work and backpacked to long lake just as it got dark. Surprisingly, on August 16 there was heavy frost covering the tent and all the grass when we woke the next morning. Nothing a blazing camp fire couldn't take care of until the sun came up and warmed everything. We had a great time hiking and rock climbing.

2008-08-15T08:10:00.000-07:00

Watch out kids at Wasatch Elementary School. Mrs Hatch will be teaching all these lucky kids music this year.

2008-08-15T08:06:00.000-07:00

Congratulations Stefanie for successfully completing your degree at BYU. Now on to bigger and better things!

2008-08-07T22:05:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Update August 7 2008
As you can see the pumpkins are continuing to grow like crazy. There are two that are 57" around already. If they keep growing, who knows how big they will get. We are not competing for the biggest pumpkin at the fair, but it is fun to grow such a big one. There are probably 20 others started.

Now the real garden story for the week. Notice the corn patch is looking pretty good. We planted four rows every 2 weeks so we would have corn over a longer period of time and the first four rows I planted a early variety that only gets about 4' tall. Well as the ears were beginning to ripen, some animal went down all four rows and peeled the husk back and ate some of the tender corn. Almost every ear was ruined. We just figured it was a raccoon and expected he would be back for more of our tender corn. Mack decided he would put a stop to that so the next night he brought a spot light and his shotgun as well as a variety of other guns to see if he could eliminate the varmit before he destroyed the rest of the garden. I know it is difficult, but I would like you to picture this in your mind. Mack is sitting in his Suburban down wind of the garden so the corn destroyer will not pick up his sent. He is lying in the front seat with the seat reclined as far as possible. He set his watch to vibrate every 20 minutes and placed it on his forehead so it would wake him. I only wish I had a picture of him. That is dedication to the garden. Lucky for the raccoon, he did not appear that evening.

Now for the rest of the story:

Talking to a neighboring gardner down the road he is told there were two raccoons thrown in his dumster by someone. He was also told that the real corn killer might have been starling birds who also love corn. This reminds me of another story, but it it too long to tell tonight.

We have been enjoying a ton of squash, beans and swish chard. The tomatoes are just starting to ripen and I ate one of them tonight for dinner. It is nice to have fresh garden tomatoes even if we don't have very many yet.

Thank you Mack for your dedication to the garden. If we could find someone as dedicated about killing the noxious weeds we would have a beautiful garden. Any volunteers?

2008-08-01T13:55:00.000-07:00

Fireball

I have considered creating a blog just to promote fireball activities, but I don't have very many pictures. If anyone has pictures of our fireball activities, would you please send me a copy? It is still unbelievable to most people I mention it to even with the pictures. Have you ever heard of anyone else who does such a crazy thing?

2008-07-29T10:34:00.000-07:00

The garden is producing well. The pumpkins are growing daily. The tomatoes are still green (sigh), and the weeds are giving us a run for our money!

2008-07-28T09:45:00.000-07:00

Diane and I spent the 24th of July weekend in Durango and it was a perfect weekend. I took over 300 pictures and had a hard time deciding which few to share as a reminder of how beautiful it is there. The only thing mising in the pictures is our family.

2008-07-18T13:58:00.000-07:00

I posted all of the reunion pictures I took this year on my online Picassa album. You can access them at the following link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/GrubbsReunion2008Spokane

Enjoy!

2008-07-17T08:46:00.000-07:00

We have pumpkins starting to grow. You will see from the pictures below that the vines are growing rapidly. The pumpkin has both male and female blooms and it is the bees job to transfer pollen from the male flower to the female flower. As you can see from the pictures, the bees are doing their job because we do have pumpkins.

2008-07-15T12:33:00.000-07:00

I seldom post to my blog without a picture, but there are exceptions. I have always been interested in my lineage. Having recently posted a picture of a Grubbs Family Reunion in 1913, I started thinking about my second great grandfather, Wilson Lumpkin Grubbs, who fought in the Civil War. As a child, I remember seeing his uniform on display in the Cyclorama, a museum in Grant Park in Atlanta, Georgia. Today I started searching for the uniform and found that it has been moved to the Atlanta History Center. I called and spoke to Gordon Jones, a historian there who was very familiar with the uniform. H said I could come by and he would show it to me, but since I live so far away, he promised to send a picture. The uniform was donated to the United Daughters of the Confederacy which is dedicated to perserving such things.

To be a member of the UDOC, you have to prove you are a direct decendant of someone who served in the Civil War. Although I don't see any reason to join, all of my girls qualify. I checked out the UDOC and found the following quote which I thought was worth sharing:

Why I Am a Daughter of the Confederacy
Written by Mary Nowlin Moon (Mrs. John)

I am a Daughter of the Confederacy because I was born a Daughter of the Confederacy. A part of my heritage was that I came into this world with the blood of a soldier in my veins...a soldier who may have had nothing more to leave behind to me and to those who come after me except in heritage...a heritage so rich in honor and glory that it far surpasses any material wealth that could be mine. But it is mine, to cherish, to nurture and to make grace, and to pass along to those yet to come. I am, therefore, a Daughter of the Confederacy because it is my birthright.

I am a Daughter of the Confederacy because I have an obligation to perform. Like the man in the Bible, I was given a talent and it is my duty to do something about it. That is why I’ve joined a group of ladies whose birthright is the same as mine...an organization which has for its purpose the continuance and furtherance of the true history of the South and the ideals of southern womanhood as embodied in its Constitution.

I am a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy because I feel it would greatly please my ancestor to know that I am a member. It would please him to know that I appreciate what he did and delight his soldier love to know that I do not consider the cause which he held so dear to be lost of forgotten. Rather, I am extremely proud of the fact that he was a part of it and was numbered among some of the greatest and bravest men which any such cause ever produced.
I am a Daughter of the Confederacy because I can no more help being a Daughter of the Confederacy than I can help being an American, and I feel that I was greatly favored by inheriting a birthright for both.

Having read several books on the Civil war recently, I have gained a greater appreciation for those who fought on both sides of that war. I do not agree with the South's point of view on slavery, but I am a decendant of many who fought for that right.

Some have pioneer heritage, we have Confederate heritage.

2008-07-13T11:10:00.000-07:00

The 2008 Grubbs Reunion
What a gret time together!
Thanks to Debby & Jim for a wonderful time at their home.

2008-07-09T23:24:00.000-07:00

Now isn't this cool?

My grand father is person number 11. His brother is number 20. My great grandfather Grubbs is number 108 and my great grand mother is number 107. We wouldn't have known which one was Papa Grubbs if Don Grubbs had not been visiting yesterday and identified him in the picture.

2008-07-09T23:16:00.000-07:00

Grubbs Family Reunion
Grant Park
Atlanta, Georgia
1913

I have been facinated with pictures Mother and Dad brought to the family reunion this year. The picture below is just an example of whaat was in the box. Unfortunately, we only have names for about 20 of the 110 people in the picture. I trying to determine how to publish this picture where others who might like a copy will see it. Of the 110 people in the picture, there could easily be 100,000 descendents. It would be neat if we found someone else who has a copy and knows the names of the people. Isn't genealogy great? If I only had more time!

2008-07-09T22:46:00.000-07:00

Cousins Campout

I got behind and am trying to catch with so many fun things going on this summer it is hard to keep the blog current. We had our annual cousins campout at the cabin while Trevor and Kathryn were visiting. We had fun - some slept in tents others slept in the cabin. We roasted marshmellows over the camp fire, rode quads, took an adventure hike through the woods. We hope everyone had a good time. It was so good to see Trevor and his girls. We hope to do it every Spring.

2008-07-09T22:17:00.000-07:00

Grubbs Family Reunion update Tuesday, July 9, 2008

We canoed the Little Spokane River after a traditional sausage gravy and biscuit breakfast. We had 8 canoes and lots of fun for everyone. We have also had several slow stick remote planes flying at the park in the late afternoon.

2008-07-06T22:04:00.000-07:00

Grubbs Family Reunion 2008

We started gathering Saturday to Debby & Jim's home in Spokane. As a starter, we attended a Kit Kidderich movie about a girl who lived during the depression or WWII, I can't remember for sure. While we were in the movie, someone buglarized Todd's car and stole a hand gun, IPOD, and money. Not a good start for him. We attended church and came home for a traditional roast dinner for 32 people. Jason organized some treasure hunts and kept the kids entertained with other games such as high jump (jumping over his leg). They all colored and played other games. I don't know the schedule, but I am sure I will find out as the week goes by.

Will keep you posted!

2008-07-02T09:54:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Journal

I have always enjoyed pumpkins as you can see from the picture of Stefanie years ago, but I have never grown any giant pumpkins. Last year a neighbor had a pumpkin vine that came over the fence and grew a huge pumpkin in our yard. You can see the results in the picture with Diane. We collected some of the seeds and have planted them in the garden as you can see in the last picture. Now will be the test to see how big of a pumpkin we can grow. There won't be any competition because no one else planted one this year, but it will be fun to see how big they will get. We have the right seeds, plenty of space, lots of water and lots of sun. What else could a pumpkin want? I will keep you posted with future Pumpkin Journal Updates!

2008-06-29T22:18:00.000-07:00

I was talking to a Scott, a friend at work the other day who goes golfing once or twice a week. He had just returned from a trip with his two brothers where they golfed 172 holes together in one weekend. I began to wonder where he found so much time to golf. As I was out working in the garden after work, I realized just like Scott, I was doing what I enjoy and that is gardening. I don't know why. It is hard physical work and takes a lot of time and energy, but I find it so rewarding. We have a "family garden", a term I use loosly. It was supposed to be a family garden, but it is basically a garden where Mack and I labor with a little help from Diane. It is 30 x 100 feet and you wouldn't believe how many weeds can grow in 30 x 100 feet. I expect it is something like 30x100x100 or 300,000. I feel like I have pulled at least that many weeds single handed.

As a child, I thought it was cruel and unreasonable punishment to be forced to work in the garden or flower bed pulling weeds. Of course, pulling weeds is not the part I enjoy. There is something about the law of the harvest you can experience every year as you plant, tend, harvest and eat the fruits of y our labors.

In a similar way, Heavenly Father has planted, continues to tend each of us each day. Someday it will be our time for the harvest and hopoefully we will be consider part of the good fruit of his labors.

2008-06-29T21:45:00.000-07:00

Brent Morris, a neighbor is one of the most original people I have ever known. While the confernece center was being built, he went to the quarry where they were cutting the granite (same quarry used for the SLC Temple) and bought some of the left over pieces. The two pieces he is pointing to are located in his front yard. They are positioned at exactly the right angle so on the longest day of the year, the sun shines through the small slit at sunrise. Each year, he has a ward party at sunrise and everyone gets to see this event.

Now that is pretty cool if you ask me. Who except some of the ancient cultures would ever think of that? Way to go Brent!

2008-06-07T07:50:00.000-07:00

June 6, 2008 was a beautiful day for Brandon and Karen. What a prividledge to witness the marriage by Karen's grandfather, past president of the Salt Lake Temple and get to visit with her family during the day.

Congratulations Brandon & Karen!

2008-06-07T06:28:00.000-07:00

Friday, June 6, 2008, the day after Brandon and Karen's wedding, we invited the family to our home for dinner. We had everyone in the first picture except Julie who came later (sorry Julie). The newest member of the Grubbs family is Andrew (Leslie & Ty's new baby). The boys posed for a great picture for posterity. What a treat it was to have so many familiy members together.

More pictures are availab le at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/GrubbsFamilyDinnerJune62008

2008-06-01T21:57:00.000-07:00

As you can imagine, we have hundreds of pictures of the wedding events, but it is overwhelming to decide which ones to include. I will post some to a slide show on my album soon. We were blessed to have all of Stefanie's brothers and sisters, all the grand kids, Mother & Dad, Tiffany and james, Debby and Jim and all of those who live close by. It was truly a wonderful day!

2008-06-01T21:46:00.000-07:00

We had a family dinner with visitors we don't see very often. It was so nice to see everyone and have them stick around for a little while after the wedding activities to talk and catch up on life.

2008-06-01T21:36:00.000-07:00

The snow has melted, the fun snowmobiling is over for the year, but the cabin is ready for summer fun. We took three grand kids for the weekend and had a fun time building a fire to roast marshmellows, hike the stream, ride the quad and sleep in the loft. We hope the rest of you can join us for the cousins campout June 27-28. The more the merrier.

2008-06-01T21:29:00.000-07:00

It was a perfect day at the Bountiful Temple.

Congratulations Stefanie & Will!

2008-06-01T21:25:00.000-07:00

Stefanie Hatch

It still sounds strange, but I will get use to it in time. I still have to think sometimes to say Jenny Douglas or Aprilyn Bucklein.

2008-04-07T20:44:00.000-07:00

Diane and I returned to the cabin after conference Sunday. She wasn't feeling well so I took a walk through the new fallen snow. It was, as usual a wonderful time with nature. It is so cool to be the first to walk in an area that is blanketed white with new snow. It is as if no one has been there. How often in this busy world do we get to be first anywhere? It is so white and pure and quiet! As you can see, the snow is melting now. It keeps snowing, but the sun will soon win and the white will all be gone. That may have been our last trip with the snow mobile. Snow on the road will be melted soon and we will have to wait until it is dry enough to drive in. It has been a treat to get away to a place so close by.

2008-03-31T19:13:00.000-07:00

The snow keeps coming and we keep going back for more. I hate to see it come to an end. I wish we could share this fun with everyone.

2008-03-24T08:39:00.000-07:00

From the deep snow last weekend to the desert this weekend. Diane and I joined her brother and his family for a work project on the houseboat. It has not been used for about 5 years and is in bad need of repair including a new roof. Although the water is low, Lake Powell still provides a great playground that I have learned to enjoy with the many opportunities Mack and Kaye have given us over the years on their houseboat. It was a quick trip - down on Friday after work, working all day Saturday on the roof, then driving home after dark. We had about 20 people over for Easter dinner and it was a treat to visit with everyone, especially Brandon and his new fiance, Karen. I was so tired, I forgot to take pictures of them.

2008-03-21T07:44:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist sharing a few of the pictures of Diane's new grandson. I helped create some of these fun images. As old as I am, I still get a kick out of photography.

2008-03-17T14:59:00.000-07:00

More Pictures of the snow

2008-03-17T14:57:00.000-07:00

Spring is on its way, but we are still having a great time in the snow as you can see from the pictures below.

2008-03-10T11:29:00.000-07:00

Family dinner March 9, 2008
We celebrated Stefanie and Will's engagement, sang happy birthday to all the March birthdays, ate delicious food, and enjoyed visiting with each other.

2008-03-10T10:37:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was the grandkids turn at the cabin. Nathan, Ashley, and Abriana joined us for a fun filled weekend in the snow. The cabin was cold when we first arrived and Nathan helped build the fire in the stove to warm the cabin. We played games and had a great dinner. The next morning after a great breakfast, we spent most of the day outside sledding, riding the snowmobile, and digging a snow cave. You can see the excitement in the faces below. The first thing the girls told their parents was, "We got to stay up until 10:30 pm." That's what happens sometimes when you stay with grandparents!

For more pictures http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/GrandKidsAtTheCabin

2008-03-02T21:16:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Diane! Ean Campbell born Feb 29th (Leap day) is our 13th grandchild. You can tell Diane is one proud grandma!

2008-03-02T16:47:00.000-08:00

Causey Cabin has been a wonderful place to escape this winter. Diane and I wish we could get all of the family up to the cabin while it is so beautiful. We finally convinced Mack to join ust this weekend and you can see how beautiful it was, especially on top of the mountain. The snow is starting to melt and I believe this is the first winter that I will be sad to see it come to an end. You can see from the picture of the truck how deep the snow is up there. We hope to have a weekend when all the family can join us once it warms up and we can drive up. The only way to get there now is by snowmobile and we only have one.

2008-02-24T20:15:00.000-08:00

Louise Goodwin and some of her family came to Utah to see some snow. We had plenty to show off this year. See pictures at the following link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/LouiseGoodwinAndFamilyInUtah

2008-02-14T21:42:00.000-08:00

Another family dinner! We always miss those of you who don't make it.

2008-01-23T08:57:00.000-08:00

We had a nice visit with Ryan and Natalie. He came up for a job interview and had time to visit. You can see more pictures by clicking on the following link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/RyansVisit

2008-01-20T06:14:00.000-08:00

We gathered once again at the Mack Grubbs Home to feast and visit. Three people in front of Mack are Julia Harris (Marcie's friend), Marcia Haeffner and Reba Terry. Stefanie also brought Will, a very nice young man. They met at the MTC where they both work. They have been dating for 2 months. As you can see, several family members were missing due to sickness. Hopefully, everyone is back on their feet by now.

2007-12-24T22:57:00.001-08:00

We had our traditional Jerusalem dinner tonight. We started the tradition many years ago. It was to resemble what we thought they may have been eating for dinner the night and place the Savior was born. When the kids were young, we always dressed up in robes and scarves with bands on our heads to represent the dress of that time. Along with the traditional soup we have different types of cheese, grapes, pomegranate, sparkling cider, unleavened bread or crackers, etc. We eat by candle light and enjoy the spirit of reading and sometimes acting out the nativity. Aprilyn and Brian and their boys joined us tonight so for the first time in a long time, we had someone to participate in the nativity.

2007-12-24T22:21:00.000-08:00

Christmas Memories
Bill Grubbs (born Jan. 1945)

It is Christmas Eve and I have been thinking of past Christmas experiences with many fond memories. I thought I would share a few of them.

When I think of things I got for Christmas, the first gift from Santa I recall was an electric train. We were visiting grandparents in Georgia and I remember sitting on the floor after we had opened the presents. Santa had brought me an electric train and I was all excited about it. When we got it put together we found it would only go backwards for some reason. Dad was never very mechanical minded and I don’t remember if we ever got it running forward or not.

My next memory is the Red Rider BB Gun. Mack and I both got one the same year. They were the leaver action which took two hands. Mack had broken his arm and couldn’t cock his gun with his cast so we would go out shooting and I would cock my gun, cock his gun, and then we would shoot at something. I remember shooting at birds was fun until one of us actually hit one. It really got to me and I think that was the last bird I ever shot at. And yes, I do remember Mother saying, “Be careful and don’t shoot out someone’s eye.”

I don’t know how old we were, but I remember when we got our first bicycles. I think they were a little big for us, but came with “training” wheels. I put that word in parenthesis for a reason. We were trying to ride them on the country dirt road in front of Granny’s house. The dirt road is graded high in the middle and slopes to the ditches on each side so the rain will run off quickly. Well it may be good for rain, but it isn’t good for training wheels. As I leaned to the side, to stabilize myself with the training wheel, I would go right in the ditch. After several bloody accidents we finally took off the “killer” wheels and I was riding successfully in no time.

Christmas always included going to Grannys and Papas for the day. All the cousins would gather there with their Christmas gifts. It was not just a family day, but an extended family day. It wouldn’t have seemed like Christmas without all the cousins. Granny didn’t have much, but would give her all to make it a special time for all of us. The food was always out of this world and she usually stayed up until the early morning hours getting it ready, knowing that the family would be coming.

After Helen and I married and moved to Dallas, the small marketing research company I was working for ran into financial difficulties and had to shut down. That left me without a job. I was looking for work, but hadn’t found anything. I was doing odd jobs for friends and trying to make ends meet, but our savings were running out. We had two children at the time and Christmas would have been very meager. We came home one night to find several boxes and grocery bags full of Christmas gifts for us and the kids. There were also several bags of groceries. It was truly a humbling experience to know that someone one out there was watching out for us. It was a special Christmas.

After Jenny and Brandon married we got involved in a Sub For Santa for a needy family from some foreign country. We had each of the kids donate or provide a gift. After we wrapped the gifts we went to deliver them. The Mother could not speak English and after we had given them the gifts, we finally realized we had the wrong address. We didn’t have the heart to take the gifts away from the kids and returned home to gather gifts again for the right family.

Probably one of the most touching Christmas experiences ever is the year we asked the Young Men and Young Women to help at the homeless shelter downtown Salt Lake City. We arrived under the viaduct early in the morning to help. It was very cold and we worked outside serving a hundred or more men and boys food. They were most grateful. There was also a trailer full of blankets and coats we passed out to those who needed them the most. As I recall, we didn’t know where Ryan was at the time and I wondered how it would be to see him in the line for food. He had been there before, but was not there that day.

2007-12-24T21:22:00.000-08:00

Second Chapter of Christmas Memories by

Evelyn Joye Hamberlin Grubbs

Christmas at My Mother’s Parents

I remember a wonderful Christmas at my Grandfather and Grandmother Lindsey’s. They lived in a beautiful big two-story home. It was Dr. Winn’s home before he moved to Gilmer. In the two-story home he had an office building in front, near one corner of the home. Grandpa had three other houses nearby. As his children grew up and married, the first one lived in the office building. As another one married, they lived in the little one and the first couple moved to a larger house as they began to have children. This change continued as others married.

We always had so much fun at Grandma and Grandpa’s. This particular Christmas they had a huge tree in the living room. The ceilings were high and the tree touched the top. When we got up Christmas morning – guess what! Santa was still there sitting in a chair. He lifted me up on his knee and asked Edith to sit on the other knee, but she was afraid of Santa.

My cousin, Edith Carter, was also my best friend. We were the same age and always played together when I went to our grandparents. They always lived near our house. We went to our grandparent’s a lot on all holidays.

Christmas Tree at the Kelsey Gym

I was in the first or second grade in Kelsey School. My teacher was Sister Dorotha Christianson. The missionaries taught school there. They were great teachers and had a love for their students and desire for them to learn in all fields of study. The prophet, President Heber J. Grant said the cream of the crop was sent to Kelsey to teach, and they surely were. We were so blessed to have them.

Besides general education, they taught us in drama, dance, and many other supplementary subjects. We were in many plays, floor shows, and dances in the gym. They made it so much fun and enjoyable. This particular Christmas we were in a Christmas play. A great big Christmas tree was in the gym in the corner between the bleachers and door on the right side of the stage where all the performers waited to go on stage. The parents all brought a gift for each of their children - unknown to the children, for it was from Santa. I was a rabbit in the play wearing a rabbit suit with a ball of cotton for a tail. A boy pulled my tail off.

One of our traditions was to make a gift for each other at Christmas, depicting the Savior’s gift to us. We were always taught why we celebrated Christmas. My older sister, Vaughn, read Christmas stories form the Children’s Friend magazine. We didn’t have much opportunity to go to church for it was too far for us young ones to walk. When we went to our grandparent’s home, we went by wagon. We would jump off the back of the wagon and walk part of the time. My mother always packed a big trunk full of food when we went to my grandparents.

Christmas as a Teenager

We moved to Gilmer and lived at Frees Lake. We could now go to church regularly for it was not too far to walk. We only had Sunday School and Primary. We had no church at night. We were few in number and had no Priesthood holder to carry on part of the time. Brother Shirley walked seven miles from Kelsey to Gilmer and back so we could have church.

We always drew names and exchanged gifts which was fun. We had lots of friends and many parties at our place because my parents had planned and built a big play-ground up behind our house that all ages and adults enjoyed.

When living there, we usually went to my mother’s parent’s home for Christmas to be with our many cousins. We had a car then. My mother always cooked and took lots of food for the Christmas dinner. Missionaries came to our home and would go to the dinner with us.

During the Many Years of Christmas with Our Family

What a joyous time of year celebrating the birth of Christ. To us it was getting together with our family. I know of no better tradition, for my family was always more precious to me than anything or anybody. They were my life. I always enjoyed giving gifts and I really miss not being able to. I love the spirit of giving and doing for others. It’s all so different when you don’t have all the family around. I miss the wonderful spirit of giving. It makes me feel sad, but time changes everything. I just miss all those wonderful years, but I’m so thankful for my family. We lived through many years of Christmas celebrations, so thank goodness for the memories. I often think of my grandmother. She had 108 grandchildren. She gave a lot of herself. She had not gifts to give, but she gave each one of them some little item at one time of another through the years. I was so proud of what she gave me. I kept it on the tall antique of Mama’s. It was just a little bench about 1 inch tall and 2 or 3 inches long. It was always as special to me as anything I ever had because I felt she gave her all like the widow’s mite.

One Christmas before we had children, we lived on Surfside Island next to the Coast Guard Station. I remember opening a gift from Grubbs’ mother and sister, Louise before Christmas. It was a picture of his sister. As soon as I half-opened it and took a little peek of it, I quickly covered it, for I felt terrible I had opened it. I like surprises, and it was no surprise then. That taught me a lesson. I never, ever wanted to do that again. It was a beautiful picture of her and I always treasured it. That was my first Christmas away from home which I missed much. That was the only time I was away, for Grubbs sent me to his home to sent money to support his mother and sister. They both worked and we only had service pay. We went back when Bill was a baby in 1945, but Grubbs was shipped out to Florida and I got on the bus and went home after he was gone. The bus was crowded – lots of soldiers. The driver said I couldn’t get on. I told him I was going to get on and I stepped up in the bus with Bill on one arm and suitcase in the other, determined I would not be there alone with no family at Christmas. I stood up until we got to Houston (about 60 miles) and a service-man insisted I take his seat. It was good to be home.

After Grubbs was out of the service we stayed home Christmas because he wanted to watch the ball games. We had a few years like that with the kids always wanting to go and be with cousins at my parent’s so the kids and I went to Mama and Papa’s from then on. We had our Christmas tree at home. Our tradition was to go to the woods at my parent’s and get a real pine or cedar. The smell of pine to me is like a wonderful part of Christmas. Another tradition was to decorate the tree with some of our old favorite ornaments. We decorated with stars, a reminder of baby Jesus and lights were special to light our way. One tradition was to take cinnamon rolls or German Stolen bread to the neighbors, also to go caroling to neighbors and some of the members of the church. One more tradition was my mother’s chicken dressing, her tall layered coconut cake, and many pies and never leave out her delicious yeast rolls. Last, but not least important was our Holiday Wassail drink served in little dainty cups. Oh! How good to have a hot sip of that before Christmas dinner.

We always went to Mama and Papa’s as long as they were here. So many wonderful Christmases. All our love to them for their sacrifice and work for us to have enjoyment ourselves. Many other thanks to my sister, Fayrene, to open her home to us after our parents were gone. I really appreciate her because she and her family help fill the void of not getting to be with all of mine. I’ve had a good life and am thankful for my health and all my family near and far. You light up my life. Have a wonderful Christmas.

Love Always & Forever,

Mother
Granny Joy
Gran Gran

2007-12-23T21:47:00.000-08:00

Second Christmas Memory Installment

My Childhood Christmas Memories
William Edward Grubbs (born 1922)
Written December 2007

When I was a kid I don’t remember us ever having a Christmas tree, I talked to Louise and she said we did have a pine tree. I don’t know where it came from or who brought it and put it up. I don’t remember any of that. I do remember making the decoration. We had to make our decoration. We made paper chains out of construction paper. We cut it in small strips and glued the ends together after running it through another link in the chain. We also made pop corn chains. We would get a needle and thread and sew the pop corn in chains and that was our decorations. We made some other decorations but I can’t remember what they were. We did have Santa and we got presents but very few as I remember. When we lived in Woodbury Dad’s mother gave my brother W. A. and me bicycles. Louise wasn’t old enough. Mother couldn’t keep up with us then. We rode all over the country. Once we rode down to Warm Springs and talked to President Roosevelt. I started high school in Decatur and I wanted to join the ROTC. Dad gave me his shot gun to sell and buy me some high top shoes. I sold the gun to the barber and got my shoes. Mother and dad were having problems during our growing up years and we weren’t given very much attention, and I don’t know why but we moved often then.

I am sorry there isn’t more, but my memory is gone. Dad

2007-12-23T21:38:00.000-08:00

I asked Mother and Dad to provide us with some of their memories of Christmas. Below is Mother's first installment with a promise of more to come. I have been listening to "To Kill a Mockingbird" and the Christmas described in the story sounds much like Mother's. I don't know how to do it, but I would like this to be a forum to invite other family memebers to share Christmas memories with us.

My Christmas Memories as a Little Girl
Evelyn Joy Hamberlin Grubbs born 1925
Written Dec. 2007

We lived on Holloway Hill. I had not started to school and I was probably four-years-old. Christmas was near and we had busied ourselves decorating the house for Christmas. We were all excited looking for Santa. We lived in a three-room-house with a long front porch, made from wide wood planks and a tin roof. I enjoyed hearing the pitter-patter on the roof when it rained. The heater had a long stove pipe that went up through the top of the house and I could not figure out how Santa could come down that stove pipe since he was larger than it was.
Christmas was near and we busied ourselves decorating with decorations we had made. We made chains by coloring the stripes on notebook paper with red and green Crayolas. We cut them out, pasting them together one end to the other with home-made past out of flour and water. This made rings that we connected together for chains to put on the Christmas tree and hang around the room. We also put a needle on a long, long piece of heavy thread and sewed the needle through the popcorn and pushed it along the string for popcorn chains to put on the tree. We put foil we saved from gum around sweet gum balls to hang on it. We folded a piece of paper and cut it long-ways or square and cut the edges jagged, then cut little holes in different shapes. Unfolded and we had snowflakes – little ones and all sizes to hang on the tree and from the ceiling. We went to the wood and pulled beautiful raton vines from the trees. We carried them to the house and decorated over the window and doors, also out on the porch over the door and windows.
A very special morning at our house on t Holloway Hill was waking up, jumping out of bed and seeing Santa had drank his milk and eaten his cake. Fayrene and I were so excited to see two little rocking chairs near the heater with a doll in each. Several doll clothes were spread over the bed, little dresses, panties, pajamas, and more. The clothes were so cute and we had fun dressing them. We didn’t know until later that our older sister, Vaughn, had made them. She was probably ten-years-old. Otis got a tricycle that year too.
My little rocker was so special to me. All rockers I had ever seen would turn over if you rocked too hard. This rocker was different – the rockers on it were curved down at the back and would stop it from dumping you backward. Later I learned it was over 100-years-old when my mother bought it at Lees Second-Hand Store in Gilmer. About sixteen years after that Christmas, a kerosene lamp caught fire in the house and the straw in the seat and back partly burned. I had it redone with straw just as it was.
My mother always wanted to make sure we had a really good Christmas each year. She worked in Gilmer and walked twelve miles there and back sometimes only making a quarter (25 cents) a day. Can you imagine her sacrifice and diligence to her family? Her biggest sacrifice and sorrow was to leave her children everyday to go to work. We had very little because of the depression, but we always had plenty to eat. Our parents worked very hard to provide all they could. We enjoyed each other and were a very happy family for we loved one another. We made nearly everything we played with.

2007-12-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

Stefanie and Will were here today and we talked them into Christmas Caroling with us. We visited about 30 homes and had a great time wishing them a merry Christmas and leaving each of the with a picture of the Bountiful Temple (I still have thousands). It certainly was fun to harmonize and brighten several people's day including ours!

2007-12-08T20:37:00.000-08:00

Instead of using graham crackers this time, Diane rolled out ginger bread and made pieces to make larger houses. Each family had a house to build together. As you can see from the smiles and cute houses, everyone had a great time.

2007-12-01T22:08:00.000-08:00

We are gearing up for the second annual gingerbread house building party this Saturday at 10:00. We hope everyone can join us. We had 11 last year and hope for more this time. Please let us know for sure if you are coming so we can have sufficient supplies!

2007-11-27T20:53:00.000-08:00

Too Busy to Make Ice Cream

Who knows when it started, probably many generations ago. Home made, hand cranked ice cream at Granny and Papa’s (pronounced Paw Paw) was the ultimate treat ever. Today we go to the freezer and pull out a quart of store-bought ice cream and have a bowl. It is like fast food, quick and easy, but not the same. Ice cream at Granny’s was a social event that lasted for hours and today many years later it exists as a sweet memory of my childhood. Granny, with help from some of the girls or women would mix up the ingredients from memory. She never used a recipe as far as I can remember. Just so the tradition can continue we do have the recipe:

Ice cream recipe from Myrtle Lindsey Hamberlin
Gallons
1 1½ Ingredient
4 6 eggs
1 1½ can of canned milk
1 1/3 2½ minimum cups of sugar
1 2/3 2½ maximum cups of sugar
2/3 1 table spoons of real vanilla
4 5 bananas or 1 box of other fruit
½ ½ cup extra sugar for sour fruit

Fill the remainder of the container with whole milk.
If you knew Granny, you know she never used anything but the best ingredients. This was not one percent or two percent milk, but whole milk straight from the cow with about two cups of cream at the top unless you shook it up. To make it even richer, she would scoop the cream from the top of another gallon or two and add to the mix. Sometimes it was plain vanilla, but usually there was some type of fresh fruit such as bananas, peaches, or strawberries. It was not unusual to make several freezers, depending on how much extra milk was available.

I liked helping Papa because he did the “man’s” job. We drove seven miles to Gilmer in the black ‘49 Chevy. I am not sure what color it was initially, but Papa had repainted the car for some reason with a can of black paint and a paintbrush. You could tell because the brush strokes were obvious (he was really good at fixing anything with paint and bailing wire). We would go to the Gilmer Ice house, the only place in town to buy ice. It came in large blocks about a foot square. We would get a few blocks of ice and put them in the trunk of the car in an old gunnysack, or toe sack as we use to call them. They were recycled feed sacks about two feet by three feet and made of rough burlap as I recall. I don’t remember what we talked about on the way to town and back. Probably not much and that was OK. Papa was a man of few words.

Ice cream was always made on the concrete driveway in the back of the house right in front of the garage. Papa would put the blocks of ice in the gunny sack or toe sack as some called them and crush it with the side or back of an ax. We would help add the crushed ice and salt to the freezer as someone, usually Papa, turned the crank. Once there was enough ice in the freezer we would put one of the gunny sacks on top and we would take turns sitting on it to help keep it steady. The freezer held two gallons of ice cream and stood about two feet off the ground. Papa would give each of us a chance to turn the handle or crank until we tired. It wouldn’t take long and the ice cream would start to get hard and only Papa or one of the other adults could turn it once it got hard.

Someone would bring out the bowls and spoons for everyone and scoop out the heavenly treat. The two gallons wouldn’t last long and Granny would have another batch mixed up, ready for freezing by the time it was gone. We would eat all the ice cream we could hold while sitting around on the driveway or the back lawn. There always seemed to be lots of cousins and other relatives or neighbors there for the treat. I guess they could sense that it was time for ice cream and come by for a visit just at the right time. If there wasn’t enough ice cream, Granny would mix up another batch and we would freeze more until everyone was satisfied.

Remember, this took place in Kelsey, Texas where it gets hot in the summer. It was a social event where the adults would sit around in the cool of the evening, eating ice cream and talking while we played fun games such as hide and seek, tag, or Annie over. You would have thought you were in heaven surrounded by all the people you love and all the ice cream you could eat. It was a carefree time of my life. Everybody seemed to love everybody and you never wanted the evening to end.

Now it seems everyone is too busy to make ice cream. When do we take time as families to just sit around making and eating ice cream and talking as the sun goes down? I say if you are too busy to make homemade ice cream, you are too busy for heaven because it was a bit of heaven on earth.

2007-11-18T20:07:00.000-08:00

Diane and I spent 4 days in San Francisco. I had a class and she decided to join me. We had a great time in the evenings eating hot fudge sundays at Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory, walking around Fisherman's Warf, hiking to Lombard street with the winding road.

There had been a big oil spill earlier that week and crews were on their hands and knees cleaning oil deposits from the sand.

2007-11-08T12:06:00.000-08:00

Mikayla participated in a really cute version of Cinderella last night. She was the star of our family and did a great job. I included the picture of Mikayla and Nathan becuase the looks on both faces was cute. Nither of them were sure about a picture in this pose. Sara was there in her costume and loved every minute of the play.

Congratulations to Mikayla for such a fine job!

2007-11-05T09:43:00.000-08:00

You know you are getting old when you can remember your own kids at this age.

http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/DinnerAtJeffAndAmyS

2007-11-05T08:53:00.000-08:00

Where have all the years gone?

I am thankful for pictures. They bring back such great memories. I try to find time frequently to look at some. Like anchors, they help us remember where we have been, but more importantly, where we want to be. Each person in this picture has been a big part of my life for a long time and many continue to influence me for good.

Thank you all for your part!

2007-10-31T14:54:00.000-07:00

We probably win the prize for the biggest pumpkin in the neighborhood this Halloween. They will be a nice addition to our porch tonight.

I hope everyone has a happy Halloween!!!

2007-10-29T21:14:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a technique for bluring an image I learned from a podcast. Mine doesn't look as good as the instructors, but he has been doing this longer than me. I do have the images to work with. I just need the time with photoshop to get it right. Just an artistic flair to a fall picture.

2007-10-29T08:29:00.000-07:00

October 27 we hiked a narrow slot canyon in Maple Canyon. It wasn't the prettiest canyon for pictures, but Nathan said it was the second best hike he had ever been on. The best in his book was the Black Box. What made it great was it's relative ease for hiking. When you are carrying one of the hikers on your back all the way, ease of hiking becomes important. We ate on the way down. We ate when we got there and we ate when we got back from the hike thanks to Mack and Kaye's preparation. Nathan and I brought peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and a bottle of water and thought that would be sufficient, but enjoyed the feast. The boys got to do a little rock climbing with a safety rope and that made it a great trip for them. You know the kids had fun when they were asking when they could do it again.

Additional pictures can be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/MapleCanyonHike

2007-10-22T06:52:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at the Pumpkin Party. I hope the kids had as much fun as the adults! We appreciate the opportunity to spend time with these special kids and see the excitement and enthusiasm they have for life. You can see the rest of the pictures at the following link

http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/PumpkinParty

2007-10-17T08:23:00.000-07:00

Diane and I spent a glorious long weekend in Durango at the peak of the fall color. It was breath taking when the sun came out and we couldn't stop taking pictures. I have included a few of them here to whet your appetite, but have included additional pictures at the following link: http://picasaweb.google.com/billgrubbs1/DurangoFall2007

Enjoy and I hope some of you will join us next year to see the beauty for yourself. It is worth the trip!

2007-09-24T10:56:00.000-07:00

Red Mushroom - Durango, Colorado

Diane and I took over 100 pictures on our last trip to Durango and this was by far the best picture of the day. Someone told me it is a magic mushroom and will give you a buzz if you eat it. I don't know about that, but it gives me a buzz to look at it.

Enjoy!

2007-09-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

Ben Zander - Conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra

I attended a presentation by Ben Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and was amazed at his enthusiasm for life. I thought you might enjoy this little clip on U-Tube as a sample of his presentation. He was truly inspirational and opened my eyes to new possibilities!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r57r534apRo

2007-09-23T21:47:00.000-07:00

Black Box Hike

Although it has been a few months since we hiked the Black Box, I would like to share some thoughts about my experience. I consider it a privilege to have had the opportunity to participate in the hike. I wish all of my family could have joined us and experienced it together. The Black Box experience allowed me to see people in a different situation that presented challenges and opportunities for each person to show their true colors. We had the challenge of rappelling down an 80 foot vertical wall with many who had never rappelled before. Some found it a great experience. Others found it extremely intimidating. Since there was only one rope to descend the wall, it gave everyone time to watch others and to anticipate their turn. Unfortunately, it took us much longer than expected and everyone had a chance to learn patience. Needless to say, some had more anxiety than others. Some demonstrated more patience than others.

Once we made it to the bottom of the wall, we had a long hike through many obstacles including deep water swims, swift currents, large boulders, and deep mud. Knowing roughly how long it would take to reach the bottom of the canyon, we knew it would be close to dark before we got out of the canyon and we had to hustle. Hurrying as fast as we could, we came out of the canyon just as it got dark. We thought we would be back to the cars in no time, but because of the dark and a poorly marked trail, we found we still had a long way to go.

We would hike awhile, and then we would have to stop while Mack and Trevor went ahead in search of the trail. We were still wet and started getting cold in the night air. We found ourselves huddling together to stay warm. At this time, everyone was tired and ready to be home. This is when I saw the real personalities emerge. Looking at our situation from a different perspective, I could see a small group of people where some were prepared physically and emotionally and able to reach out and help others in the group, sharing warm, dry clothes, and what little food they had left, but more importantly, giving encouragement and emotional support where needed. To those who reached out with such loving support, I thank you for your great examples. You were an inspiration to me.

I thought of the pioneers and the trials they experienced as they crossed the plains. I am sure some were more prepared than others and some had more physical or emotional stamina. Some were able to reach out and offer assistance to those around them. If it weren’t for those willing to reach out and help where they could, fewer would have made it to the Rocky Mountains.

Thanks again to Mack for organizing this trip and inviting others to partake of the lessons available to all who went. It was truly a spiritual experience and I am thankful for the lessons I learned along the way.

2006-11-25T21:35:00.000-08:00

2006-10-06T19:59:00.000-07:00

Dallin Mack Grubbs with cowboy hat at the October heart attack breakfast

2006-10-04T12:58:00.000-07:00

Survivors of the October Heart Attach Breakfast.

See any body you know?