Unexpected Endings

I am sorry to report that Dad and Nan's engagement is at end. Dad has requested that I change my blog to reflect this unexpected ending. I have to admit I am struggling to know what to write and my heart has gone out to my father at this time.

Bag Tagged

Amy, I have answered the call and here is my purse. I have to say that I carry much more stuff than you do (and I'm not a mom yet, what does that say about me?). Scarily enough I do carry a Dell PDA, a Nano, an excessively large wallet, a notebook, three sets of keys, a card case, mints, gum, jewelry that needs to be repaired, a sliver ring, three shades of lipstick, one lip liner, one lip primer, two pens, one pencil, a flashdrive (memory stick), checkbook, sunglasses, dental floss, nail file, a GameBoy game, 65 cents and approximately 1/2 lb of loose floating receipts. Amazing how much stuff I carry around and embarrassing to have to admit exactly how much to everyone.

The Rules...
1. take a picture of your bag
2. show a picture of ALL the contents in your bag
NO CLEANING OUT FIRST!!!!
3. "Bag Tag" five people

Okay, the gauntlet has been thrown down Haven, Kim, Erica, Beth and Malorie. Dump those purses and let's see what you've got....what's in your wallet?!

Hiking

While in St. George last weekend I went hiking with Jocee, her two children Milly and Brejden, D.J., Jillian, Colby, Lachelle, Kato (my dad's dog) and Jeff, Nan's son (Dad's fiancee). We went hiking just North of Snow Canyon park and found snow on the rocks but the weather was nice and warm. Kato had a blast splashing through the puddles and Brejden kept trying to follow him into the puddles. We found a small sand dune and D.J., Jeff and Jillian took turns jumping over bushes (or in the case of Jeff, belly-flopping into the sand). It was so funny!

Brejden, after seeing everyone else jumping in the sand decided to jump himself. When we were ready to leave the sand dunes I emptied about 2 cups of sand out of each of Brejden's shoes.

Jocee and I have been having a "Biggest Loser" contest since the first of the year so she refused to let me carry Milly in the Snuggly because she wanted the extra calorie burn associated with packing the extra weight. As you can see, Milly spent most of the hike sleeping through (she is a true Schmutz). Towards the end of the hike Brejden shouted he was jumping over the bush and jumped right in the middle of it. After the hike we returned to the car for snacks and bottled water.

Engagements Galore!

It's official, Dad and Nan Glauser are engaged. They started dating a couple of months ago and Dad finally popped the question. Nan has eight children and Dad has five so the total number of children will be thirteen.

Dad proposed to Nan by Quail Lake, he arranged for a couple of singers to be there with their sound system. He took down by the lake where a blanket and stool were set up and got down on one knee and proposed.

Nan lost her husband to cancer a couple of years ago and her and Dad met when she went into the dealership to sell her husbands truck that she had been hanging onto, started telling the salesman her story. After hearing it he told her, "You have to meet Jeff, he just went through something similar", they started talking and the rest is history.

Dad was wise and let Nan pick out her own ring but upgraded the diamond. He told me that her diamond had to be bigger than Jocee's and I's ring.
Nan has four children still living at home and Dad has three so they will have a full house together.
They haven't picked an exact date yet but they are thinking sometime in May...more details to follow.




Grandpa Schmutz


Grandpa Schmutz has also proposed to his Betty on February 14th. They have been dating for awhile and Gramps finally worked up the nerve to ask her to marry him. They have not decided on a date as of yet but they are really excited!


Betty has been having some problems with double vision (hence the eye patch that she thinks makes her look like a pirate) and wants to get rid of the patch before she gets married.



Grandpa was also wise and allowed Betty to choose her own ring. (The previous women in this family trained them well)

Utah Museum of Fine Arts

Colby and I went to the Utah Museum of Fine Arts with the Young Men and Young Women in our ward. The first Wednesday of every month is free so it was a fun outing for all. I really enjoyed the special exhibit "Natural Revelations" by Susan Swartz.

"Color inspires me, also layering. My paintings have many layers, like an onion. When you stand in front of one you see something different than when you are 15 feet away."

Her art work is considered abstract but I really enjoyed it because of my ability to be able to tell what she was trying to paint. I am no art critic and I like to be able to tell, without having to be told, what the painting is supposed to be of. You can view her artwork at the following link.

http://www.susanswartz.com/index.html

Bentley's Birthday

Yesterday we celebrated Bentley's first birthday. Bentley is the son of Colby's brother Lyman and his wife Kimberly. It is hard to believe that he is already one year old and has come so far. Bentley was born with a herniated diaphragm and underwent major surgery within weeks of being born and spent several months in the NICU at Primary Children's hospital. His birthday party was a Superman Theme and he enjoyed all the presents and the attention but he didn't like the birthday cake as you can tell from the slide-show.

Colby's parents and sister came up for the birthday party so we were able to spend some time with them. I went formal shopping with Lachelle and Sharlene and we found a great dress for Lachelle's Junior Prom. Stay tuned for photos because Kim and I will be going to St. George the first weekend in March to assist with beautification process, not that it will take much.