Company!

My mom and my brother, Steve, came to Blanding over President’s Day weekend.  Steve had visited last summer and my mom had been down for Mike’s father’s funeral.  But, she had not been in our home at that time.

 

They arrived in Steve’s new car, although my mom drove the entire trip.

Steve likes his sleeping accommodations because it include a television in his ‘room’.  He slept in the living room last summer, too.  He has his own little set up and routine!

Eating at Twin Rocks in Bluff is a must when we have visitors.  Mike and I took Steve and mom there on Saturday afternoon for lunch.  My mom wanted a Navajo Taco.

Inside Twin Rocks…

  

Waiting for Mike to pay.

 

Steve just wanted to hang out at our home and watch sports.  He didn’t want to do much, plus he’d seen the ‘tourist’ spots last time.

My mom wanted to see our home, etc.  I think we passed inspection!

I drove my mom and Steve around town on Friday afternoon.  I showed them where we go fishing, town vs. county, the Decker Lake of Blanding, and a few other places of interest.

Saturday morning I took my mom over to the Blanding Visitor’s Center.  I like the visitors center because it includes a lot of the history of Blanding and it has a display about the tunnel, which is part of the Lyman family history.

Monday morning, before they left, I drove my mom out to the ruins just outside of town.  There are so many ruins in San Juan County.  It’s amazing.

We were so glad to have family come and visit.  Anyone is welcome any time!

Our Valentine Date

 

A couple of weeks before Valentine’s Day, I saw a flyer at the grocery store.  The theater group in town, Edge of the Seaters, was offering a dinner theater for Valentine’s.  I thought it would be fun to attend.

 

I was surprised at how easy it was to talk Mike into going.  We made our reservations and went to the Blanding Arts Center on Monday night, the 13th.  (It’s a good thing because I woke up sick again on the 14th and stayed in bed all day!)

 

Mike had Cornish Game Hen w/rice and I had Pot Roast w/baked potato.  We had a dinner salad, roll, a cream puff dessert and candy on the table to snack on!

 

The play was a one act play and it was delightful!  We arrived at 6:30pm and were home by 8:00pm.  We had a evening.

 

Surprisingly, there were several places in town offering Valentine dinners, etc.  I think we chose the best one!

A BIG Decision

Okay, don't get too worried by the post title...

The other day Mike and I were talking and we decided that we are undertaking NO BIG PROJECTS this year!  I am so relieved.  We did put together a list of unfinished or day projects (hopefully) that we will do, but NO BIG PROJECTS!  Here is our list for the year

1)   Summer Projects

a.      Finish Painting Entry Way

b.     Remove Elm Tree in Front Yard

c.      Plant Lawn on East Side of house

d.     Shelves in pantry on back porch

e.      Replace Windows in front room

f.       Paint outside trim around front room and guest room window.

Considering all of the projects we have undertaken here in Blanding over the past couple of years, we are both relieved at this decision.  This will be a restful year, so to speak!

We'll keep you updated as these projects come to fruition.  But since it is technically winter, we won't begin until Spring arrives!

Our Trip to Las Vegas…

As a child, I (Sidney) drove the stretch from Salt Lake to Vegas many times with my family.  I remember seeing the sign from the freeway for Valley of Fire State Park and asking if we could go there.  Of course, we were 20 miles from home so the answer was ‘no’.  (I don’t blame my parents for saying no!)

This trip, I saw the sign, mentioned my childhood desire to Mike and the next thing you know, we were driving the desolate 13 miles to Valley of Fire State Park.  Basically, it is red rocks and slick rocks, much like the terrain of where I currently live, but… I have another item knocked off my bucket list!

 

This picture makes me look like I hiked quite a long distance, but in reality, it was about 15 feet!

Mike, posing in a couple of different formations.

We then drove Shoreline Road, which goes around Lake Mead into Boulder City and then drove into Las Vegas.

 

Our timeshare was at The Grandview.  We were amazed by our accommodations!!!

 

We fulfilled our goal of eating at a Chinese Buffet.

Mike went to his favorite gift store, only to be disappointment because it has turned into a real tourist trinket shop, not the odds and ends shop of 2005.  The only good news is that it sells pottery from Cedar Mesa Pottery.  Mike’s Uncle Joe originally started the business and now his cousin, Joe B. runs the business here in Blanding.

Sunday we attended the Calico Ridge Ward in Henderson, Nevada.  We loved the building because it dates back to the early ‘60s.

Afterwards, we drove out to Hoover Dam and walked along the new bridge that was recently completed. 

If the light pole were not in this shot, (and the people) it would be a beautiful print!

    

We drove up to a view spot to view Lake Mead.  Mike specifically wanted me to take of picture of him fixing his tie.

Mike is the best husband.  He graciously drives me around to fabric stores.  I went to all of the stores in Las Vegas, plus JoAnn’s.

One night, we rented five movies from Red Box.  We had a movie marathon.  (The good thing about living in Blanding is that we don’t see all of the new movies that come out.  So, in this case, going to Red Box, they had many movies available which we had not seen!  Otherwise, we don’t generally like Red Box’s selection.)

 

Our FREE MONEY - $39.40.  Okay, we do not gamble our own money.  I need to make that clear.   But, the Grandview had an agreement with the casino next door.  The casino offered us free cards which entitled us to $25.00 of money to gamble with as well as discounts on food, etc.  I told Mike, “I wonder if we can cash in the $50.00.”  The answer was no.  But, I found out that if I played the slot machine, when I ‘won’, I could cash out the money.  So, we played our $50.00 and ended up cashing out $39.40.  We definitely made money on the hotel.  Yea!

 

All and all, Mike and I are so grateful to his sister Marjorie, for offering us her timeshare and to his sister Suzanne, who came and stayed with Mike’s mother.  We had a GREAT TIME relaxing.  We have returned to Blanding RELAXED and REFRESHED.

Quilt Tops

Recently I made a couple of quilt top, 51 x 72.  They would be more for the bottom of a child’s bed.  Anyway, I sold both of them on Etsy.  I have to tell you, I think they turned out darling. 

At a glance, they probably both look the same, but this first one has a dark/light color scheme.  Example:  Hot Pink and then a softer hot pink, Bright Lime green, then a softer lime green.  Of the two quilt tops, this one is my favorite, but both are darling and I’ll probably make another with the remainder of my leftover scraps.  Yes, these two quilts were made with my scraps!!!

The second quilt top is below.  Can you see a difference between the two quilts?

The pattern is a variation of one that I found on line.  I quite like the look of this quilt.  I’m trying to decide if I want to make one for me to keep!!!

2011 Christmas Card

Dear Family and Friends,

This year, our Christmas letter is electronic! With all of this technology, it seems like the best option. (Not to mention that I can tell that cards are just not going to get mailed this year!)

What’s been happening with the Christensen’s in 2011?

In February, Mike’s father passed away. He was 90 years old. Mike served as an excellent care giver to him. All of Mike’s siblings came to Blanding as well as other family members. While a sad occasion, it was enjoyable having them all in town at the same time! Mike continues to care for his mother. He is so kind and patient with her. Sidney continues to learn so much…

In April Mike and Sidney took a mini-vacation to Colorado Springs to visit Sidney’s brother, Dave, and his family. We had a delightful trip. One of our favorite spots was stopping at Glenwood Hot Springs. So fun!

We worked on several ‘projects’ this year.

• We painted the ‘junk room’ aka the room where Mike’s dad kept everything. Mike’s mother wanted a guest room and graciously allowed Sidney to move in her sewing machine in as well.

• We had a bountiful garden this year. Sidney kept busy canning tomatoes any way she could. Mike has suggested we not plant as many tomatoes this year (we had 18).

• We also sold all of our rental properties this year and no longer have any rental units. We are actually glad to be out of the business as it too difficult to manage from long distance.

• We painted the living room and entry way of his mother’s home in October. His mother chose the color, sage green. A bucket of paint goes a long way in transforming a room!

• Mike painted our bathroom after the living room was painted. Sidney could not stand the thought of ONE MORE PROJECT and thus, watched.

Sidney decided to participate in the local Farmer’s Market this summer. It was a new adventure and she thoroughly enjoyed it. It was fun to come home each week with a little cash in her hand. Spending money is nice to have.

Mike’s been having success as an author, here in Blanding. He was invited to the local book group where he talked about his novel, The Tomb of the Devils.  Sidney also sold several copies of his novel at the Farmer’s Market. Mike has listed his novel as an eBook on Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble. Humble as ever, Mike is always surprised when ANYONE purchases a copy of his novel. (Sidney here… This is one of the reasons I love Mike, he is a very humble man.) He continues to SLOWLY work on his second novel.

In September we traveled to Northern California to attend Mike’s 45th Class Reunion. Even though we had a tire blow out the first day, the rest of the trip was uneventful, so-to-speak. After the reunion, Mike continued to fulfill Sidney’s dreams of going to The Hearst Castle and Solvang, California. Even though those places were interesting, the highlight of that portion of the trip was viewing hundreds of elephant seals along the coast. It is interesting that nature always seems to win out!

Throughout this past year, we have been continually reminded of the many blessing our loving Heavenly Father has blessed us with. We are so grateful for the atoning sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ. We wish you and your family a Merry Christmas, as we celebrate the reason for the season, the birth of our Savior.



With love,



Mike and Sidney Christensen
88 W. 200 So.
Blanding, Utah 84511
435-678-2941
Email: sidney7705@gmail.com or mchris1966@hotmail.com

Quilt Tops

I’ve sold a couple of quilt tops lately.  Even though I am not keeping these, I still like to take pictures and keep a record of items I have made.

 

The first top I named “Oregon Coast”.  It reminded me of the colors of the coast when we visited last summer.  This quilt measures 74 x 90.

 

The second quilt I titled “Goin’ Camping, II”  I had scraps left over from a previous quilt of the same name and pieced together this brick looking quilt. It goes together so quickly that it is worth the time and effort I take to make and sell it.  It measured 62 x 84.

I still enjoy selling items on Etsy, although I haven’t been a diligent in recent months.  Maybe things will change after Christmas.