OCTOBER RACES 2008

Every year we travel to Las Vegas to go to the National Hot Rod Associations big races. They have one in April and one in October. We get to stay with Kyle and Brinlee which is very sweet of them. This year in October we got up early to eat at the Cracked Egg. They specialize in breakfast and it was worth the trip. Thanks Kyle and Brin for turning us onto this place. Then we headed to the race track. We met Darrin aka Uncle Dag and Austin at the track and we walk through the "pit" which is where all the race cars are worked on. Kyle and Brin have gotten to be experts at gathering drivers' autographs and getting their pictures made with them. Tony Schumacher even let Brinlee sit on his Harley for a pic. I'm jealous cuz Tony is my favorite driver. It is a loud, chaotic, crazy time but tons of fun. You always meet the most interesting people and it's an evil thrill to see how many kooks you can spot. Believe me there are lots of them. :) Some of them even drive race cars. You can't tell me that John Force is not the kookiest. Sure, he can drive a race car but the man is certifiable. But he's harmless and very funny so it's all good. One of my favorite things about going to the races besides watching Ray have such a good time is sitting next to Austin and teasing him. We steal each other's seat cushions and tap each other on the opposite shoulder and then act innocent. We have shoulder fights to see who can push the other over the farthest. We have a lot of laughs and usually top off the weekend with dinner out someplace. I look forward to these trips because it is one of the few chances I get to spend some time with my baby brother and his boy, Austin.

MICAH'S GRADUATION

After the trip to Texas the first part of June for the Kenny concert I got to return at the end of the month with McKenna for Micah Dallas Stefan Haile's high school graduation. Ken and I rented a car and drove from Dallas to Abilene so no one would have to come pick us up. It was so nice to have our own set of wheels to go anywhere our little hearts desired. We also got an upgrade on the flight to Dallas to first class. It was hard to fly back on coach after that. We only stayed a few days but as usual in Texas we had more fun than a barrel of monkeys. (I'm sure they are talking about the children's game when they say that cuz I don't think a real barrel of monkeys would be that much fun but now I'm just being random so on with the blog) We attended the graduation and I didn't even fall asleep like I did at Cody's graduation. Although the trip was quick I'm glad we were able to go. I want Sharee's kids and Darrin's too to know how important they are to me and how much I love them. I rejoice in their successes and feel for them when they are dispirited. I love spending time with all of them and hope that they will always feel welcome at my house and that they will "come see me sometime".

Third Annual Kenny Trip w/My Sister

This memory was this summer. The first was my trip to Texas for my and Sharee's third annual Kenny weekend!! Woohoo!! And yes that is Sharee jumping on the bed at the plush and very swank Westin hotel in Frisco. Would you really expect anything else?? I arrived at the hotel first but was only there a few minutes before Sharee showed up. As her bellboy is stowing her luggage in the room he tells us that Kenny Chesney will be staying at the very same hotel!! Of course it was a big hush-hush deal so we were sworn to secrecy and yes the bellhop got a big tip! We went down for a dip in the pool before dinner where we of course tried to guess which room Mr. Chesney would be occupying. Later we went for a drive and got something to eat. Then we got in our jammies and watched a movie on tv and laughed and talked and had the time of our lives. The next day we went shopping and just kind of dorked around until it was time to go to the concert. We tailgated for about half a minute and then went and got in line. We made instant friends with some of the other fans as we were waiting. We also talked up the security. We have found this is a good thing to remember to do as you never know when you are going to need a friend in security. One that say will not harass you about your "illegal" camera. Hahaha! Sharee and I were so amped up about this concert. It was a mini-stadium show (at a pro soccer field) so we got to see LeAnn Rimes and Brooks & Dunn in addition to the Kenny. Yes, we are Chesniacs but only mild ones. We don't stalk him or anything like that. Well okay, maybe we do but it is just silly things like checking out the dishes and stuff on his room service cart. And yes we took the empty Corona bottles cuz you never know which one he drank out of. No we are not crazy just lots of fun!! :)~
Here we have Ms. Rimes and Kix & Ronnie. They were all fantabulous! That LeAnn has legs that go on forever. And Kix and Ronnie put on one heck of a show. Kix had the coolest pants and guitars. Oh...and we were so close that Ronnie Dunn dripped sweat on Sharee. Hahahahaha! It was so hot but by the time Kenny took the stage it was dark and cooling off. Yes, ladies that's
how close we were. They call it the sand pit and while there is no sand it definitely is not the pits. The experience of this concert was so good that I am hoping he will do a concert there in 2009 and we can return. This is a picture of our little friend (on the left) that had a brain tumor. He knew the words to every song Kenny sang. We helped him keep his place next to the stage beside us. This next pic is a picture of what Sharee called "the gay cowboy-wannabes". We laughed our tushes off. All in all we had the same kind of time we always have when we are together and that is the best time you could ever dream of or wish for. I'm looking forward to the fourth annual Kenny trip with my sister. Woohoo!!

CHRISTMAS 2007

It seems impossible that these memories were made almost a year ago. Wow! Time just jets by these days. I feel like I should pay better attention somehow. I should preface this by saying the I made two trips to Texas last December but the other occasion was not as joyful as our Christmas trip. My grandmother, Dorothy Anthony, passed away at the age of 96. I will miss her and her sweet spirit and look forward to seeing her again.
But on with the memory of this great family time. Ray, McKenna, Brinlee, Kyle and I all drove from St. George to Abilene together. What a blast! Check out the picture of our stop in Roswell, NM. Thanks for the glasses, Kyle!

We had a wonderful time with all our family and friends. We ate all the good southern cooking we could hold. Thanks Mom and Sharee and Roy for feeding us so well. We played and goofed and had lots of fun. I sure will miss them this year but look forward to next year when we should all be together again.
This is a picture of us all together on Christmas morning minus Cody and Cassie (to the right) who showed up a little bit later.
I'm including some more silly pictures so enjoy.We have Brin, Kyle, Kenna, and cousin, Micah. McKenna and Micah being way gross. Brinlee and Kyle. Brin and Ken in PJs. The Girls--Brinlee, Aunt Sharee, Mom (me) and Kenna.The Hailes.And last but not least, Meemee!

MORE MEMORIES....

This was our cruise summer 2007. I've always wanted to go on a cruise and I wanted Ray to go with me but he wasn't about to go on one of those "floating rat traps", so I called my sis, Sharee, and we took off on what I hope is the first of many road trips. We were lucky that we got to ride to California with my friends, Mike and Dana McConnell. They were raised in CA and Dana knows how to do a road trip. She was awesome!! And even though Mike likes to act the curmudgeon sometimes, he was a lot of fun to hang out with. They picked us up in Las Vegas at Brin and Kyle's and the excitement began. We stopped at an outlet mall on the way there and what a way to start a vacation! We had so much fun as we boarded the ship and got to our cabin. We went on several excursions and saw Catalina Island, La Boufadora, and various other stops. We loved lounging on the deck reading books and especially dinner with our friends. After the cruise Sharee, Mike, Dana, and I continued the fun by staying a couple of days in Anaheim. We took in a baseball game--the Anaheim Angels. It was so COOL!! The next night we stayed at an old college friend of Mike's, Sever. That is is last name but it's all I can think of right now. The next day he took us surfing. It was hilarious!! Sharee and I secretly called Sever, Surf God. He was funny and thoughtful and showed us a really fantastic time. I'll never forget the memories we made that summer and the kindness of good friends.

MEMORIES

Ilene Mackelprang and her dog with his "doggles"

Linda and Scotty Mackelprang

As I use this blog as a journal of sorts I would like to take the time to reminisce about some recent memories I've made. I want to set them here so I can go back and remember all the fun I've had.

First was a fun four wheeler ride Ray and I took with some of the members of our extended family and friends. We met at the Wagon Wheel cafe in Leeds for breakfast before starting out on our trek. There were about 15 or so in our group inside that tiny cafe. I'm sure they were glad to see us finish up and get the heck out of there but we visited and teased and just generally had a good time. I got lost a couple of times and had to find my way back to the group or have Ray track me down and get me back on track. One of these days I'm going to really get lost and have to use my survival skills but not today. All I can say is what a bunch of characters and what a time we had. I can't wait to do it again.

Thanksgiving 2008

Well, it's Thursday evening on Thanksgiving Day 2008 and all is quiet and everyone is content (or passed out). Brinlee and Kyle are headed back to Las Vegas after making the trek to join us on this wonderful family holiday. McKenna is passed out on the couch but she's excused as she worked with me in the kitchen until late into the night last night making pies. Ray is watching his favorite Fox News channel and catching up on the world happenings. I have been sitting here contemplating and trying to assimilate all that seems to be happening. But I digress. First I want to say how thankful I am that I was able to have all my little family here for the holiday. It is so amazing to spend time with these terrific grown ups that are my kids. I am thankful that we all have our health and so many other blessings. I see Kyle and Brin working to build their life together with love and patience and forgiveness. McKenna is making a continued and concentrated effort in college while working two jobs and making sacrifices of her time to be successful in both areas. Ray is the same lovable, helpful, loving, exasperating man he has always been. (At least he's consistent..hahaha!) I have so many blessings that it brings tears to my eyes to think on them all. But it does us all good to count our blessings and realize how lucky we are. :)

We all enjoy a relatively peaceful existence which is contrary to how a lot of the world lives their daily lives. How lucky we are to be able to live in this wonderful place and to enjoy the freedoms we do. How thankful we should be to those men and women who protect those freedoms. It seems as if the world is in chaos but I feel safer knowing our military is out there watching our backs. I saw a news report today where an Iraqi man was asked how he felt about the soldiers being withdrawn. His answer was that he would "miss them. The Americans never sleep." He felt safe with them out there in the night guarding the peace. I know how he feels. A huge thank you goes out to our military.

I hope that each of us searches our hearts today and thinks long and hard about all our blessings. I hope those hearts are filled with gratitude to overflowing. May God continue to bless you.