Our Yearly Reunion

Monday found Reed and family, along with us, heading for Oregon for the family reunion that daughter Jessica and hub Chris arranged for us.  We headed for the town of Sisters, near Bend, Oregon.  As we drew near, we caught a glimpse of some beautiful mountains in the distance.  Three of them.  "They are the Three Sisters," Layne told me.  They are sometimes called Faith, Hope and Charity.  So came the name of the little town of Sisters.

In the distance you can see the Three Sisters.

Our back yard, complete with a lake.

We stayed in a large home in a recreational development called Black Butte Ranch.  All of our children came except Gerald and his family.  We were hoping for them to join us but July turned out to be a bad time for them to come.  But they have promised to come for Christmas!  We were also missing Audrey's husband, Cliff.  He had to work.  True also for Audrey's two oldest children.  But everyone else was there.  It was a loud, busy, happy time.  The development where the house is located had many activities inserted into the roads that wound throughout the neighborhood.  There was swimming, tennis, biking, golf, sports fields, play areas, picnic areas, boating, etc.  Wow.  It was more than we could possibly fit into a mere 5 days.  But we tried.  There was a hot tub on the back patio of our house.  I was looking forward to wonderful, starry nights in that tub, with the deep conversations that would surely emerge as we would crowd into the warm water.  But the kids spied the tub right away and lived in it much of the time.  Somehow spending time there, after many children did, became a bit unappealing.  So not an adult toe entered those waters.

Kids in the hot tub.  It was a daily experience.

But there was much else to do both outside and inside the house.  We played games, watched movies on the wall of the living room, went boating and biking and visited.  Each family prepared a day of meals, except Layne and me.  We became the clean-up crew.  I really don't mind doing that; I have developed a real sense of pleasure in making things look clean and neat.  And that was needed many times a day.

Our youngest granddaughter, Victoria (daughter of Ben and Jes).

Scott (Reed and Dorothy's eldest), who will be leaving on a mission to Thailand in November.

Monkey business in one of the local parks.  Gemma (daughter of Chris and Jes) is the victim.

All the children spent many fun hours together.  My two Jessica's spoke of the blessings that come from spending extended family time together by mentioning the many benefits for children in knowing that they have family who know and love them, no matter what.  I felt that as a child and I hope these children do too.  I have come to realize that family is absolutely the most important thing.  It is worth every sacrifice.  I so hope that my children will continue to seek each other out after Layne and I are gone.

My two Jessicas; daughter and daughter-in-law.

While spending this fourth fun packed week with family was fun, I have felt my age, perhaps more here than before.  Maybe because I was tired.  I found that I couldn't ride one of the many bikes stored in the garage.  I just couldn't balance.  I also had trouble keeping my balance getting in, and especially out, of the boat we rented on the nearby lake.  I wasn't much good at frisbee either.  Tired?  Old?  Perhaps a bit of both.  But I am only willing to give in to old with gritted teeth.

The whole Black Butte family!

Dorothy and Reed, with son James in the background.

Audrey, perhaps speaking to missing hub, Cliff.

Layne, kissing Victoria's neck.  She loved it.

Daughter Jessica and hub Chris, the reunion masterminds.

Benjamin and his Jessica.

We drove home on Saturday morning, after cleaning everything up.  It was a wonderful time together and I think we all felt blessed by it.  Layne went to bed early every night during the reunion.  I stayed up with the kids every night.  Perhaps that is why I have crashed a bit this weekend.  I awoke last night with pressure in my chest.  It scared me; I thought of all the worst scenarios.  It lingered for several hours.  I walked, rode the stationary bike, drank, sat, laid down, and, finally prayed.  Soon after that the pressure let up and I slept the rest of the night....and all through Church today.  Perhaps the old girl just isn't up to so much activity.  Perhaps.  But I wouldn't want to have missed it.    

Full House

Layne and I have been working with our pornography addicts for almost 9 months now.  I have come to love the wives that make up the support group that I attend each Sunday night.  They are righteous women who do their best to follow the commandments of God and live with the addictions of their husbands.  It is not easy.  Dreams are lost and hearts are broken.  Addiction is hard to break.  It seems to me that most of the addicts that attend the recovery group Layne leads are only partly committed to quitting, at best.  I have come to believe that only 100% commitment to overcoming pornography addiction will work.  The rest just play at quitting.  And so the nightmare for supporting families lingers on, usually for years.  It is a world I do not wish to live in, and neither do these beautiful women.  Together, every Sunday night, they talk about their struggle living with addicted husbands and how they manage to live with it.  Now there is a new program to use at these meetings, designed just for those who try to support their addicts.  We started using it last week.  I believe it will address the basic needs of my group, but time will tell.  Sometimes I feel like the war for the souls of men and women is unfairly balanced on the dark side.  There are so many snares and so many of them involve sex.

                   Idaho wildfires turned the sun red and filled the sky with smoke.

On the bright side, Monday was filled with clean-up from the previous fun week with Ben and his boys, Nikki and her Heather.  Reed and his boys arrived just after the house was fully prepared for them.  I was a woman alone with 7 men for the bulk of the week.  It has been fun to have these Galbraith men here; Reed, his five sons and a foster son.  Reed's Dorothy, Audrey and Isaiah arrived on Thursday and the remaining part of this past week has been full of fun and activity.  Our favorite day was Friday; we spent the day tubing down the Boise River.  Everyone, except Layne and Audrey, went and killed the day floating and laughing in the River.  All except me.  I spent it waiting for them.  But I didn't mind.  Still, I'd like to take a float myself one of these days.

The river launching place, under a bridge.  Here you see Isaiah standing, James with Bruce and Vincent.

Son Reed and his son, Timmy, making their river way.

We had another fireworks night on Friday.  It was the funnest one this year.  The older boys took charge and set off the collection of fireworks Layne saved for them.  It was a lovely show as the night sky lit up with sparkle and laughter.

The fireworks collection, carefully organized by James.

Our gang, enjoying the Friday night fireworks.

I like Reed and Dorothy's boys.  They are thoughtful and helpful.  Dorothy runs a tight ship but the result is that her sons are very attuned to caring for things and people.  I enjoy having them around.  Of course I also love having my Audrey nearby again too.  And Isaiah.  I feel full of family and so grateful for the positive influence they are on me.  I wish, wish, wish we were not so far away from them.

Tomorrow we pack up for the family reunion in Oregon.  It'll be another family packed week.  Then a few mostly open weeks for recovery.  I'm tired but happy.

Audrey's Isaiah, with Reed's youngest, Bruce.

Sourdough pancakes, a family tradition.  They were made from Mom's recipe, using her starter, her griddle and her flipper.  What sweet memories of mother.

Happy Busy-ness

Son Ben said he planned to visit us and bring two of his sons along.  We anticipated the visit with delight, especially the chance to spend some time with Ben, our very busy boy.  He and sons, William and Zachary, arrived last Sunday night, during our addiction recovery meetings.  Our neighbor and friend, Larry Wintersteen, picked up and delivered them to our home for us.  It is so great to have good friends.

In addition to them, my temple friend from our Oakland Temple days, Nikki Larsen and her special needs daughter, Heather, arrived the next day, to spend the week with us.  Heather attends a horse riding camp here every summer and this was the week for it.  So our house was full and busy as you may imagine.  Having the boys here brings up an ongoing conflict that Layne and I have.  I think that spending time with visiting family and friends takes absolute top priority.  I want to talk to them, play with them, provide fun experiences for them as well as care for them.  I wrap my life around them while they are here.  I think it is important to provide happy memories and to get close to them while we have the chance.  After all, most of the time we don't have them near.  Layne, on the other hand, feels no need to do that.  He is happy to continue his usual routine, visiting when the time opens up but not feeling inclined to go out of his way to do so.  "Let the kids play," he tells me.  "You don't have to entertain them."  But I think I do and I get a bit short tempered when he doesn't go along.  Of course I'm not presenting his side of this disagreement very well.  But, after all, I'm sure I'm right!

Layne bought some fireworks for William and Zachary.  We celebrated in the back yard.  Also present are friend Nikki Larsen and, behind the walker, her daughter Heather.

Because of this basic philosophical disagreement, I spent most of the time with the boys and gave them some fun times, I think.  After reading a book on Boise activities for children, written by friend Marianne Wilcox, I decided that they should try tubing.  So I bought some tubes, a pump and safety vests and, with friend Phyllis took the boys to Boise's biggest park, Anne Morrison Park.  The Boise River runs through it, providing lovely summer wetness and a fun tubing experience, according to the book.  Off we went, in the hot summer sun, headed for the 9th Street Bridge, using Marianne's book to guide us.  After wandering around town for over an hour in search of it, I finally called Marianne herself and finally found the starting spot under the 9th Street Bridge.  So we began to pump up the tubes.  We all took turns pumping, but the more we pumped, the more the tubes leaked that hard-earned air until we finally gave up.  Wouldn't you think two kids and two women could figure out how to pump up two brand new tubes?  Apparently not.

                                 Zach and Will at the Boise River's edge.

So we took the boys to a nearby fountain.  The hot summer day was blessed with a breeze, which blew the fountain water in all sorts of happy directions.  Our two boys joined other kids as they screamed with joy, running in all directions under the rotating mist, getting soaked and loving it.  A cloud cover compromised the extreme heat, making it even nicer.  Our failed tubing experiment melted away in pleasures as we watched the boys play for over an hour, until, exhausted, they were finally willing to call it a day.

Zach and Will at the fountain in Anne Morrison Park. The wind provided a wet adventure in mist.

                          The boys, drying out after the fountain experience.

Ben agreed to come with us the next day, and give the boys one more chance to tube down the Boise River.  Layne showed me how to inflate the tubes, mumbling something about his surprise that I couldn't figure it out myself.  Men.  Ben, Phyllis, boys and I headed for the 9th Street Bridge once again, and this time we drove right to it.  With safety jackets in hand and tubes on the boys, they made their way into the river.  Before we knew it they were off....without the life jackets!  Immediately I imagined them drowned, and on my watch!  We ran beside the river, calling to them at every opening at the river's edge to come to shore for the jackets.  I succeeded in getting one boy and Ben the other.  They finished their run and begged for another ride.  Ben, in rescuing William, got his iphone, stored in his pocket, wet.  Too wet.  As in no longer able to turn on wet.

                                                   Ben and his boys, Zach and Will.

So, after racing back and forth on the path beside the river 4 times and getting extraordinarily hot, we left the boys with Phyllis and headed to the Apple Store to replace Ben's phone.  Got it done, returned to the park for the boys and our last day ended quite differently than planned.  But the boys loved the tubing!

Ben and boys left for home Friday morning.  Nikki and Heather finished their riding school on Friday and stayed on through Saturday, providing us with some girl time.  We shopped, permed and colored Nikki's hair and had a generally good bond.  They left this morning, providing us with a day without company.  But only a day.  Reed, Dorothy and kids are coming tomorrow!

                                                       Heather and Nikki Larsen.

A House Full of Kids

A few years ago, in Fremont, CA, Layne was a Young Men's President.  One of his boys was a fellow named John Adams.  He and Layne became good friends.  John moved on, graduated from college and got a master's degree and became a teacher.  He married Anika and together they have five children, so far.  John and Anika decided it was time to reconnect with us, so they drove here from Nebraska with their five little ones.  We spent this past week together.  From the start I liked the children.  They are bright and outgoing, and, like many young children, they reached out to us with love and affection.  So I spent a great deal of time with them, playing, setting up projects and reading to them.  During much of the time they confronted me with, "Anadeane, would you...; Anadeane can I...Anadeane, I'm hungry," and so on.  I felt quite booked up with kid projects.  It was exhausting work.  I wonder how I managed it with my own five over all the years it takes to raise children.  But sweet bonds emerged very quickly between me and the children.  That is worth all the effort.  Relationships are a lot of work, but the rewards are indeed sweet.


We bought a fireworks kit at Costco to use with the Adams children on Thursday.  Most of it was smoke.  We are underwhelmed.

Anika and John Adams with their children.  Middle:  Annalee and John.  Bottom:  Gideon and Drake.

                                Me with Annalee, Gideon, Drake and John.

Me with Annalee, Gideon, Drake and John.

During their visit, our kitchen was transformed, as we acquired more granite countertops, new sink and faucet.  Somehow, even with the kitchen chaos, we managed to eat just fine.  And I love the new kitchen!  The Adams family left for home last Friday.  Clean-up quickly followed as this coming week promises to be a busy follow-up to last.  Ben and his two boys are coming today, as well as my Temple friend Nikki and her daughter, Heather.


                                                                           Here's our new counter top, sink and faucet.

New granite and tile above.  I like it.


Friday was Independence Day.  We spent it with our friends Pat and Larry Green, at their house.  They host a big gathering every year and we were invited to join in.  So we took friend Phyllis Salsedo and enjoyed an afternoon and early evening there.  Pat is a very creative girl.  One of the things she does is organize a neighborhood parade each year that involves many of her guests.  We turned our old truck into a ship to represent the Boston Tea Party and joined the procession.  Every parade needs music, so we bought a karaoke machine that runs on batteries, connected our cell phone to it and boomed out patriotic music as we marched along the neighborhood.  Kids and adults got into the act as we moved down a couple of neighborhood blocks, turned around and came back.  It was a simple thing really, and there was not much in the way of audience except from our own group, but somehow it was so uplifting and fun.


Our parade truck as the Boston Tea Party.  The side boat panel was painted by the Adam's kids.

                               Some of the parade participants.

We promised our neighbors that we would enjoy the local fireworks at their house, so we left the Greens in time to do that.  Their son Evan was so sad that we were leaving as he was giving a special performance, using various fireworks that he spun around in all sorts of interesting configurations.  We didn't see his performance but he showed me videos of past ones he has done.  "It is my time to shine," he said.  Evan is a grown man, but with some special needs that seem to limit what he is able to do.  But he is a pure-hearted man who dreams of doing more with his life.  If he only knew what to do, and how.  I felt it was a mistake to leave without seeing his performance, but Layne pressed for it, so we watched the fireworks that fill this valley with our friends, the Wintersteens.  Since it doesn't get dark here until after 10 PM, it made for a very late night.

I love the patriotism that fills this valley.  The people here are unabashedly patriotic, and they celebrate!  There were fireworks shows in every local town.  They filled the sky around us, as they exploded in every direction.  In addition, many have their own home based fireworks.  All joined together in a magical display.  There were parades in many of the towns during the day as well.  Lots of flag waving here.

Saturday morning promised to be an opportunity to sleep in and rest up.  But I awoke with an impression that I needed to go to Pat Green's, to help with clean-up.  So I headed over there and did help with some of the clean-up.  But I also talked to Evan about his fireworks performance.  He showed me the video of it.  As I watched I was so impressed with his skill.  And I was struck with an idea.  I suggested to him that he market his fireworks act.  Why not?  He loves it, it is unique and so impressive.  I believe he could sell it as entertainment at conferences, parties, weddings and etc.  As I suggested it to him, his face lit up.  Perhaps it could be the beginning of a unique and fulfilling career for him, if he has the courage to pursue it.  I believe the reason I felt impressed to go to Pat's was for Evan.

I'm tired.  But the rest of July looks to be filled with people and activities.  So I'm going to "buck up" and enjoy it.


                                     Layne at the Green's on Independence Day.