Boon Docks!

Here is a picture of the temporary house we are staying in. It is a 3 bedroom. It is part of the hotel here. Our permanent house will look like this but twice as long and yellow. Not too pretty but very functional!

This is a picture out the front window of the van while driving through the canyon to Dugway. It is pretty curvy through that 9 mile canyon. We are all learning how to deal with a little car sickness. It gets easier every time.
This is right outside the canyon on the way to the Base. The end of the road is the base. So you can't go anywhere else but there from this point. If you look really close off in the distance you can see a little bit of the base.
These guys are what we have to watch out for while driving. Especially at night. We have tons of antelope around too. I literally stopped in the road and rolled down the window and said " Say Cheese!" They were looking at me so funny. I was talking to them and I am not so sure they have ever heard a woman's voice before. I wonder what they were thinking.

There used to be a plethora of deer but they gathered them all up and shipped them away to a better place in the mountains. I heard they were eating every bodies flowers and gardens. Yesterday we saw 3 coyotes just hanging out by the road eating bugs out of the grass.

This is no joke. They are very strict. Yesterday we were going back into the gate from church (the LDS church is right off base) and I didn't have my I.D. because I didn't need my purse at church. Russell had his I.D. and he was driving, but because I didn't have mine....they made us go home and get it and bring it back.

Lesson learned. Don't leave the gate without I.D!
This is the view looking back at the mountain that we just drove through.

Here is a picture of our new truck! Russell is so happy! We can't live in Utah and not have a truck! It has come in handy already and we have only had it for 2 1/2 weeks. It fits our whole family just perfect! The only bad thing is...is that it is Diesel. I hate the sound and smell of Diesel. Oh well, whatever! I don't have to drive it....that much =)

It takes me 10 minutes to upload a picture.

This is VERY frustrating!!

Does anyone know what could be causing this? I tried the help center and I feel overwhelmed by my inability to know what the heck they are talking about. I am a little computer illiterate!

Any suggestions would be very appreciated!

Thanks

A Novel

The first big rain storm came on Labor Day.
As I was driving to Salt Lake City, I couldn't wipe the smile off of my face.
The air outside seemed to fill my senses with great memories of fall.
The smell of the rain and the crisp clean cold air caused my grin.
I was so happy to be here and so happy to be experiencing the first cold air of whats to come.
When I left Utah 5 years ago...I was tired....tired of the cold, tired of the long dreary winters.
After spending so long in a place where there is no winter..or fall, I am in love!
I am in love with the idea of the outside of my home being cold.
With the idea of wearing shoes that require socks!
And layers of clothing.
Comfy sweaters and fitted jackets.
I will be wearing socks to bed.... and pajamas!
I grew up in a home without a furnace so I know how to sleep warm!
I am not afraid of wearing layers upon layers of clothes and scarves to bed!
I think it is time to purchase some of these!
In case you were wondering...I am sure we will have heat in our house.
But why not get all cozy and comfy in soft wonderful things?!
Happy September!

The first day of School

She insisted on the sunglasses
He is so handsome! A couple of girls have crushes on him already!


Their school is so old

There are perks to having such an old school....Look how big Emma's kindergarten class is.
There are 27 kids in her class which is way too many for her teacher that is teaching for the first time this year, not to mention she is very soft spoken.
But there is no choice because there is only one teacher for every class out here in Dugway.

Emma was so excited and ready for school. I think she would be fine in first grade. She is an older kindergartner because of her late birthday in November. She will be 6 in Nov. I started Kindergarten when I was 4. I wish my Mom would have waited until I was 5. I was thinking about that and I know my life would be so much different now if I had started school a year later. You just never know how much influence one year and different friends have on your life. Am I making any sense or am I rambling? I cant tell. Russ would say that I am rambling.

Yay for the generator!

We are without power...except by generator!

Apparently a truck crashed in the pass and started a fire and 4 power lines were ruined. They said it would take 2-4 days to fix. Meanwhile, the pass is closed and those who use it have had to take skull valley, which is the long way around for those who live in Tooele.

Monday night I was fixing dinner and the power kept shutting off. Don't worry...I was able to cook the meat fully before it shut off for good! No salmonella here!!

So coming from Florida where we are used to being without power for days due to hurricanes and such, we immediately went into survival mode. We were at the gas station buying ice, flashlights, candles and charcoal!

A few minutes after coming home from the store a neighbor told us that there was a

base wide generator

that was going to be turned on in a couple of hours.

Wow!

A generator that works the whole base??!! Amazing!

So no sleepless nights due to the heat.

No cooking our food outside.

And better yet School is in session!

They are prepared!

I am glad to be here where they anticipate these kind of things!

Living here does have it's perks!

B-I-N-G-O

Wow! What a night on the town in Dugway!! It was Bingo night!

Half way through, I thought...I can't believe I am actually at a club house playing bingo!

But guess what?!

It was a blast!

.....but, I didn't win once!

It was the company!

I am lucky to have met some great down to earth women so far.

And they are seriously funny!

The thing about being in a small town is that you get to know a great range of people, not just LDS people which is usually all I ever get to know.

The prizes were gift cards to the gas station and Salt City Candles.

I wanted the Home Sweet Home one.....but no luck!

That was my first time actually playing real bingo!

And I can honestly say...it won't be my last!

Does anyone know what time it is??

Now that I am here in Utah....this is the fun stuff that I get to do with my sisters!

My sister-in-law had a tick tock clock party.

We made them from scratch.

This red one is for my living room. It will match my red couch!
This one is for my salon.....get it?

Me and my sisses.

It takes about 3 and 1/2 hours to do them. It is a lot of steps. But fun nonetheless.

The girls that came and did the party are super fun and awesome.

Give 'em a call if you want to have one for yourself!

Mandolin Martini 801-388-5789

Sheri Ricks 435-237-9076

ticktockcollection.com

Family Reunion

We had a McEntire Family Reunion at Bear Lake a week and a half ago. It was so nice to see everyone. Although, I didn't get to spend that much time with everyone. It was a quick visit because we had to get to the Base for Russ to start work the next day.

Vera, Me, ( no I am not pregnant...it is the shirt) Mom, Dad, Loni and Ben.

We were missing Marv, my oldest brother. He couldn't make it.

This is the cute little cabin we stayed in.

Last Day at the Beach

Ft. Lauderdale Beach July 29th 2008

Last Breakfast with the girls

Lucy, Me, Heather, and Andrea
Me and my Beautiful Girls....we left the boys at home =)
More Beautiful girls Andrea and Heather

Dallin and Emma

Last sunday at church in Florida

Time to catch up on all of my pictures.

Vanessa Holden and Helen. She is from Brazil. The nicest girl. I miss her already!
Stacey was Emma's CTR 6 teacher and gave her a cute bag of goodies on her last day!
Nursery

Stacey, Eva and her son Isaac and me.
I went into the primary room to hear Emma give her talk and Carter his scripture and a little girl in Emma's class told me I looked like I was going to have a baby! Gotta love their honesty right?!!

Base Funnies

Russell sent me this email. Isn't this funny!?

Wanna go out with me tomorrow? I'll Buy!

Subway Hours of Operation for this weekend

Friday 15 Aug 1200 – 1800
Saturday 16 Aug 1200 - 1800
Sunday 17 Aug 1100 - 1400

Oh, and everything is in military time which really drives me nuts because I don't have them memorized yet so I start counting on my fingers from 1 o'clock at 1300 like I am in kindergarten!

Wow it's been a while!

Well, we are finally here in Utah!

We are on the Army base waiting for a house. In the mean time we are in temporary quarters. It is a 3 bedroom house as opposed to the 1 room hotel they would have us in if there weren't 6 people in our family. We are across the street from the hotel. It is pretty frustrating to not have a permanent residence yet. We cannot do anything that we were supposed be working on for instance,

A decal for our car to get on base....

Discontinuing our phone service (that does not work out here) has been impossible so far because we do not have proof of residence......

We cannot get a base I.D. for Carter or myself.....

We cannot get Utah drivers licences.....

We cannot buy a truck which we were hoping to do this weekend.....

We cant change our license plate on the van.....

and the list goes on....and so we wait......

they issue you a house here but only when one is available! As of now there is nothing available.....and so we wait.....but it has only been 3 days. I feel like it has been longer because of all the problems we are running into because we don't have a physical address.

So far, I am loving the simple life of one grocery store that closes at 7 pm and one gas station that closes at 8pm and a theater that is only open on sat. night that only plays one movie, no stop lights, a bowling alley that is open upon request along with the hair salon. We do have a restaurant if that is what Subway is considered! I think they are only open for a few hours a day! We are staying across from the swimming pool but we haven't gone yet because it costs money and everyday my kids ask if we can go and I tell them that I forgot to get some money from Dad before he left for work. Ahhh the life of a small town! I actually feel a little less stress because I am not trying to go 6 different places in one day!

Everyday at 6a.m.- 5p.m and 10p.m they play certain music on the base. Its that horn that you hear at a funeral. I cant remember what it is called. But if you are outside, you are required to stop what you are doing, even if you are driving, and face the flag with your hand on your heart. You will get a ticket if you are caught not complying. They will ticket you for anything here. I feel like I should stop by the police station and ask for a list of rules so I can obey and not get a ticket!

Speaking of tickets.......Last Thursday, I made an illegal left hand turn and got immediately pulled over and got a ticket. Ya, I know 7 days in Utah and already I owe Roy city 107 dollars plus two hours of traffic school that I can do online if I add and extra 25 bucks! Wahoo!! We are 2 hours from Roy, So I need to see if it is worth my time to stay here and do it online or drive to Roy and go to school!! It just so happens that the guy behind me decided to follow my example of breaking the law and he got a ticket too. I felt really bad, who knows if he would have broke the law if he hadn't been following me! Oh well, I guess he made his own decision, I didn't tell him to follow me so I shouldn't feel too horrible. Bad influence!! Hopefully I have learned my lesson because the speed limit here on base is 20 and if you get caught....you not only get a ticket but you can get your driving privileges taken away.

Yesterday was a stressful day, As I was getting ready for the day... the phone rang....on the other end was my sister in law Janette telling me that my Dad was taken to the hospital because he fell and hit his head. I immediately broke into tears because I was certain he was really hurt. I was scared to death. Poor Janette delivering news to someone who cries at the drop of a hat, especially when it comes to something to do with family! I couldn't even catch my breath, I was so nervous of the outcome. Luckily they did a cat scan and a chest x-ray to find out that he had just suffered a concussion and nothing more! phew! What a relief. I am so glad he is okay! This happened 1 day after returning from a family reunion to Bear Lake. Needless to say....my Dad has had quite a bit of excitement lately. Good and Bad. So take it easy Dad and rest up!! We Love you so much!! And we are so thankful to have spent some good quality time with you!

We are also so thankful to be only 3 and 1/2 hours away and we will see you again soon!

I have so many pictures to post but I need to find them all! Soon!

GrassHoPperS

Yesterday as we were loading up the luggage at the hotel in Tooele (pronounced two-will-a), It was pretty windy. We had all of the doors open to the van and Jarom's ball got blown out and sped down the parking lot and landed in a bunch of tall weeds.

So I drove down there to get it and the first step I took on the rocks triggers several flying grasshoppers to hop and fly.

So I slowly took a few steps backwards and got back in the van and was about to drive back to the hotel and get Russell so he could get the ball, when I had a brilliant idea........

{Light bulb goes on!}

Get Jarom out of the car and make him go get it!!

Brilliant right?

Well, it worked.

I got him out and sent him in the direction.

He was a little hesitant because he was probably wondering why I got out of the van to get the ball and I didn't come back with it. He crept along and wouldn't you know it, not one grasshopper landed on him.

But I am certain that they would have landed on me if I had gone in the weeds!

Two days before we moved to Florida 5 years ago, I was in my brother in law's backyard and a grasshopper landed on my leg! As I was screaming and jumping around....I stepped in a hole and heard a crack and totally messed up my ankle!

It popped completely out.

It was a major sprain!

I was on crutches for a few weeks and it took over a year to completely heal!

It was a pain in the Butt!!

So I don't even go around grasshoppers anymore! I know I will freak out if one lands on me and It will probably be my neck I break next time!

Needless to say....I hate grasshoppers! I will miss the lizards in Florida that eat all of the bugs!

We made it!

The flight went better than I thought it would. Besides the fact that I was nervous like I always am when I fly....I survived! When we took off, the plane was shaking so bad, I thought it was just going to fall apart! The twins slept for the first couple of hours!! Amazing!! I never thought they would sleep because they never sleep anywhere but their beds! So that was a blessing. The last 3 hours was hard to keep them entertained.

The twins and I are here to stay. Russell flew back to Florida last night to pick up the other kids and they are on their way to Kennedy Space Center as we speak. Tomorrow they will be heading up to Nashville. I hope to get lots of fabulous pictures from them. I will have so many to post in a couple of weeks. For now I will just journal.

I saw my sisters for the first time yesterday, and we hung out and shopped at Roberts Crafts for a while. I am staying with my oldest sister for a week until our family reunion next Saturday in Bear Lake. It feels good to just hang out and not do too much! Awwwww! NICE!