December Birthdays

Alex Riehle: December 26, 1989


Monica Riehle: December 28.1964

Sid Moulton: December 29, 1993

May all of you have a very wonderful birthday this year and a good rest of the year!

In Memory of Joe Valenzuela: 1971-2009

Joe Valenzuela

Joe with Baby Raia

Joe and baby Jesse and Grandpa Kipp

Today was a sad day. We said goodby to Joe. I thought since I do a family history blog and as far as I am aware, nobody in Joe's family or past family does, I thought I would like write a little about him. He was only 38 years old when he died.

He married my granddaughter, Felica Featherstone in my backyard in 2002. They are divorced now. Together they had two children, Raia and Jesse. They are my great grandchildren and Joe was their father and I feel the need to say a little about him even though I did not know him well.

Whenever I saw him, he was always happy and smiling and was always very friendly. He worked at Wal-Mart for a while and I would see him there. He was a musician and today, at his service, I heard his recordings for the first time and he had an excellent voice. The service was touching and song THE DANCE by Garth Brooks touched my heart. I feel for his family and a mother should never have to bury a son before she dies. I always worry that may happen to me someday and I hope I never have to live through it.

Raia and Jesse are so young to have lost their father. I do know that they were with him the day before he died and that is a good thing that got to see him before he passed suddenly alone in his apartment in Orem. I could tell by everyone who was at the service that he was greatly loved and had close family. I will miss him even though he really wasn't part of our family anymore. But Raia and Jesse will always be my family and in that regard, Joe is as well.

We will miss him greatly.

The Dance by Garth Brooks

Looking back on the memory of The dance we shared 'neath the stars alone For a moment all the world was right How could I have known that you'd ever say goodbye And now I'm glad I didn't know The way it all would end the way it all would go Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain But I'd have had to miss the dance Holding you I held everything For a moment wasn't I a king But if I'd only known how the king would fall Hey who's to say you know I might have changed it all And now I'm glad I didn't know The way it all would end the way it all would go Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain But I'd have had to miss the dance Yes my life is better left to chance I could have missed the pain but I'd have had to miss the dance

Some Minor History

This is Randy's sister Terri and her husband Joe. They live in North Caroline. We may try to go out and visit them sometime.

Getting the Kitchen Ready

We are setting up the kitchen for Thanksgiving and we put the outside table in and it really made the cat's day. Randy's cat March decided to climb up on Randy's back while he was busy in the kitchen.

Happy Thanksgiving

Me Celebrating Halloween


Halloween has come and gone. I enjoyed celebrating it with some of my family. I wish a very Happy Thanksgiving to all of the Carrillo bunch. I wish we could all be together like in olden times. May you have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day.

The Holidays: My Thoughts

The holidays are a little hard on me. This is because of memories long ago about how much Alex enjoyed the season and how he loved to give. I also miss the joy of small children and the excitement in their eyes. Also the excitement I enjoyed as a child waiting for my dad to put up the real Christmas tree. I really miss my parents. I miss the lights that Alex used to put up every year. Even if we put them up now, it would not be the same. Randy has a hard time with Christmas because he was always on the road driving and never got to enjoy any of it. I am hoping now, he will get to enjoy it because he has a family now.

I love the music, but that is even not as enjoyable as it once was. This I believe is because of all the memories (good ones but sad) that I have. I guess because I now realize that life just goes too fast and we lose loved ones. I still love the lights and the music but with a sadness none the less. I like to look at snow but I don't like that fact that it is cold and days are very short. I never have liked the commercialism of the season. It's like all of us have to rush out and buy the best stuff to outdo others and make people happy by what we give or how much we spend. I wish the season would be more peaceful but I find that hard in today's world. I often feel stressed at this time of year. And I find that people EXPECT me to be merry and if I am not, that puts stress on me.

I do enjoy my family of the present and being with them. I am looking forward to Thanksgiving with Tammy and her family at my house and of visiting Jennifer and her family in Seattle for Christmas. So my real joy of the holidays is looking forward to being with my family and just a little sad about the ones who have left me.

November Birthdays

November 9: Kathy Carrillo 1967

November 15: Cherise Carrillo 1968

November 19: Chris Johnson 1947

and J J Riehle 1983

Hope everyone enjoys their birthday this year!!

Congratulations to Cherokee

http://www.kidk.com/news/local/64504637.html

Cherokee and her fellow FFA classmates at Rigby High have made it to the finals and are going to Indiana. I am so proud of her and her many accomplishments and her good grades. I am also proud that Chevy is in the FFA as well. Keep up the good work!

October 11 is Tammy's Birthday

This month we celebrate Tammy's birthday. She is a very special person. She has overcome a lot of diversities in her lift. She is a wonderful mom. She has a good heart. She will always be my baby girl. She has many special gifts. The is an excellent creative writer. She is very spiritual. I love her very much.

Family Vacations

Today I would like to reminisce about some good times we as a family have enjoyed in the past. My parents were the best. We always had a happy time together doing many things and even when we were poor, we always found fun ways to do things together. We once went to California and Disneyland when Disneyland was first built. My brother and I both loved the ocean. I could not wait to get to the beach and dodge those waves. My brother loved it so much that he got really badly sunburned and we had to put Disneyland off a day so he could recover. Disneyland was OK but I loved the ocean much more. We would stay with my mother's relatives when we went to California to save money. Sometimes we stayed in motels and the motels back then had kitchenettes. It only cost about $8.00 to stay one night but we thought that was a lot.

We also enjoyed going to Fisherman's Wharf once when we were there. We went to Knott's Berry Farm and The Hollywood Wax Museum and to The Forest Lawn Cemetery where many famous people are interred.

Our family would play softball every evening in the summer after dinner. We just used an old board and rubber ball and it was a blast. We also played hide and go seek when it was dark and my parents did too. All the neighbors came to our house. Their parents were dull.

My dad always took us on vacation no matter what. He even built a homemade camper once. We even stopped to eat our lunch in the camper and if there was room, we played softball before we journeyed on.

After I was married, we often continued to travel with my parents. I remember going to the Grand Canyon and John almost falling down in the canyon. We took moving 8 millimeter movies of it and the kids enjoyed watching those home movies more than watching TV. Alex would set up the projector and put an old sheet on the wall and we just sit back and watch and play the film backwards sometimes.

We once went with my parents to the Oregon coast and stayed at a sand dune campground. Alex laid the kids down in the sand and buried them up to their chins. We took pictures and it was a blast. We visited Lake Powell with my parents and toured the dam there. My dad thought it was so funny, he would say: "This is the Dam elevator" when we were going up to the dam and "this is the damn dam." He would laugh. It gave him the chance to say a bad word.

Our family may have traveled on a budget, but we always went someplace and always enjoy ourselves and being together. I will write more about our family vacations later. There are so many experiences that it would take hours to jot it all down at once. But as a family, we were truly blessed.

"I want some Wah Wah Lemon!"

You'll always remember what funny things kids say. For my brother I specifically remember the food items, "wah wah lemon" for watermelon, "your-gut" for yogurt, and "sanyo" for sandwich. It's Matt's birthday today.

Matt will always be my big little brother. After all his nickname is Biggins. He's a pretty big dude, could be a football player if you asked me.

I remember the big mole he had smack dab in the middle of his belly, the time he came home from the hospital after surgery when he was only 2 or 3, and how his heart sounds - swish swash swish swash. I remember how mad I got after finding that he had colored on my doll with yellow crayon. And most of all how I remember how he loved to play with balls and water. "Ah ah ah ah ah" was the way he used to laugh.

I admit for a while I was jealous of him. After all I was the baby of the family for almost 9 years, so why was he so special all of a sudden? How come he never had to have hand me downs or leftover toys from the other kids? How come he got a new bike and a trampoline and all to himself nonetheless? But who could deny that cute little boy! Glad I got over that. I think he sometimes feels like he missed out though since he practically grew up as an only child.

I remember babysitting him in the mornings for one summer and he would lie there in the mornings on the front room floor with his Big Bird "blangie" and watch Today's Special. Yes it was public programming and we did not have cable TV yet. The next year is when we did get cable TV and he and I loved watching Disney cartoons and thought we were the coolest on the block.

I can't believe he's already 29 years old. Time flies by! I remember hanging out with him a lot when we were both single. It was a lot of fun to go to movies and just be ourselves together and to watch him have "buzzard's playtime" with my boys. They needed a big brother after all they went through and I can never thank him enough for that.

Matt has always been very caring with a warm heart. He does not let anything bother him and chooses to love everyone around him regardless of their faults. Guess that is why I thought it would be cool to introduce him to his wife. What's not to love? He's just a big sweet teddy bear. I did it when he was 3 and took "wedding" pictures of him and the next door neighbor girl named Tia, so what was wrong with doing it again?

Have a happy birthday Matt, make it a great one. After all it is your last year of your 20's. Next year you will be all growed up!

New Mexico, Home of Alex' Birth

Hoping the Negative Can Become Positive

This past week there has been a lot of negativity in our family. I feel there is no one person that is to blame but all of us for not communicating and praying for God's spirit to be with us. So I have been praying daily and I will ask Him for the spirit to be me. Then maybe I will able to have His spirit with me before I speak or make judgements. If all of us would have had the spirit with us, things would have been much different.

I do pray that the negative astmosphere that has been a part of our lives for some time, even though we really didn't see it this way, will be resolved.

Sometimes negative forces can make a person re-evaluate their lives and then there they can be more open to communication. It's kind of sad that it takes such negativity to open our eyes. I do hope that we can be more spiritual in the future and that it won't take all this negitivity to get us back to communicating and to be a loving family again.

Because of all that has happened, this may take some time. But I shall pray everyday and make it my goal to do so. Of course a lot of it has to do with others and I bear no grudge against anyone and do hope that all of us can start walking in the light again.

This is my prayer.

Our Family

We need to all try to get along together.

Ocho is not Old!

My oldest brother turns 42 today. Divide that by 8 (ocho) and that makes him 5 and 1/4 years. Not sure where the nickname Ocho came from but it fits. The expression Ocho is old is even more complex. I don't think I was around when this occurred. It was probably one of Dad's nicknames. Sounds like to me anyway.

John has always been good spirited and strong willed. He knows what he likes and dislikes and he isn't afraid to tell you. John and I have shared a lot of similarities.

We both indulged in smoking and drinking in our underage years, but he was never "indulgent" like I was and did things at a much smarter level than I did. He stopped when he knew it did not agree with him. He worried what others thought for him doing it.

We have both had mental breakdowns and neither of us will forget it.

John is usually on a mental high - his brains always working, processing. I feel I have a lot of this going on as well only my thinking is all to myself. And the things he remembers! Things like you cannot believe!

I always gave myself the credit that it was me who encouraged him to not be fearful of his bike. I guess I do cause I remember he learned the same day I did. He tried to drive a couple of times but realized it wasn't for him. I'm proud of him for trying.

John was always nice to me growing up. I would often ask to use his Fisher Price toys to go play in the back with. I especially remember using his camper with the little boat that fit so cute on top. Toys are not the same are they? He let me play with the Weeble Wobbles too. He was and still is a very trusting person.

We also enjoyed watching re-runs of Muppet Show and Sesame Street together. Mornings of the Flintstones and Jetsons we'd watch together. I caught him a few times watching these reruns even we were older. I used to get mad at him for it thinking he needed to grow up. Why did I care?

I can still remember the smell of our Christmas tree. You know, the smell from the lights warming the garland? And there he would be switching around all the green ones. His favorite color was green. One year he was the only one that chose right from wrong out of us kids when we decided to throw the ornaments into the air to see where they would land on the tree limbs. I didn't understand why he didn't get spanked that night.

I remember counting all the hydrants and what ones were green and what ones were red and just repeating the word, "Hydrant" everytime we saw one when we drove down the road. It was a lot of fun.

I never thought of him as my big brother or the oldest, just thought of him as my friend. *smile*

Happy Birthday John! Go have a great time! You are only as old as you feel and I know you, you will be a kid at heart forever!

That's Marty for Ya

Today my brother turns 39. He has always been 2 years, 2 months, and 4 days older than me. I don't remember having too much of a relationship with him as kids other than we would watch the last 10 minutes of Dukes of Hazard together to ensure I didn't miss Wonder Woman that aired directly after. Eventually I started to like Dukes of Hazard myself and ended up watching it with him every day after school.

I know he hated sharing his birthdays. He and John always got the same clothes, toys, cake, etc. But that is how it went and personally I thought it would have been fun to have a party together with someone. He loves kitties, and I still remember the day I caught him and his friend Chad once burying them up to their heads in our garden. I was so appalled I'm sure I tattle told on him. I remember mom telling me not to vacuum in his and John's room. I guess there was too many nuts and bolts on the floor and she didn't want me to ruin the vacuum on account of it.

I don't remember him much attending elementary school with me other than I think I got the same 6th grade teacher as he did. I do remember being excited to attend my first year in high school with him cause I was so nervous about not having any friends. I remember how cool I thought I was to get a ride in his shiny red truck. One time when we were going out of the parking lot at BINGO I hadn't closed the door too tight and my little brother, Matt, almost fell out. But it was an old truck and I was a teeny bopper with jiggly arms. What do you expect? I was so sad when that truck got totaled. :( I also wanted a denim jacket and leather shoes like he did. I eventually got some too. I think I spent many days hanging out with him and his buddies from then on. My best friend and I had grown apart and he was there to fill the void.

My brother liked to tease me a lot when I became a teenager. Just like my dad. He still does, but unlike my dad Marty can be relentless sometimes. I think he had many names for me such as cream puff or typical seventh grader. I don't remember them all. I felt bad many times about it, but didn't let it bother me. I realized it was more for his amusement than to hurt me and he was a big brother so what do you expect? He made me so angry one day and I can't even remember what for, but because of it I squirted a whole bottle of ketchup on him. Just afterward I held my breath and thought he was going to flip out and kill me but he just walked away. Boy was I relieved. Squeezing the bottle of ketchup helped ease some of the stress as well. Oooh he used to make me mad though! Now it just makes me laugh when I think about it. He still loves to tease. He loves to squeeze us and make silly jokes. I wonder if he can still gleek?

Even though he treated me mostly like a brother would to his pesky little sister, Marty has always been there for me. He has done so much for me. Fixed my cars, offered to take care of my boys during a bad turn in my life, gave me advice, and even gave me blessings when I needed them. He even threatened Charlie to take care of me. If that is not a brother I don't know what is.

I hope that deep down Marty knows that no matter what the family on his side loves him too and that he means a lot to us. Sure our family doesn't always have that warm fuzzy feeling inside like the ideal family would, but we are not "card board cut outs" meant to all agree on the same things. We are a diverse family but we don't let it get us down.

So Marty I hope someday you read this and that you have a wonderful birthday today with those that you love. I don't think you check my spot out any longer cause I never hear from you guys, but there is always hope. Enjoy your last year of past 3 decades in your life and plan what you want to accomplish for the next one!

Memories of Vacations Past

When I was growing up, we didn't have much money but my dad always took us on some kind of vacation every summer. We often went with my Aunt Beverly and Grandpa and Grandma Sanders.One year he built his own camper and we went to Yellowstone and Canada. We had a great time and stopped to play softball whenever we could find an open space that was on public land. We went also to California a couple of times which included going to Disneyland when it was very new. My brother Chris and I both loved the ocean so much. My brother stayed out in the ocean too long and got 3rd degree burns once.

Even after I was married, we would travel with my mom and dad on many trips. They were good enough to let some of the kids sleep with them in their trailer. We either slept in the truck sleeper or in the station wagon with the seats laid down. One trip to the Oregon coast was very memorable when Alex buried the kids in the sand with just their heads out. We went to the Grand Canyon North Rim, camped in Mesa Verde and to the WA rain forests as well. There were so many times we went to different places that I just can't name them all.

The last trip we took with my parents was to Branson MO. We had a wonderful time. We used walkie talkies to communicate with each other. I do miss those wonderful days of summer long ago.

New Family Member

Randy and I were married on May 16, 2009. He is now an official member of our family. He was born in Brownsville PA but he has lived, PA, West Virginia, Iowa, Nevada and California all over, mostly in Arizona. I met him online when he was living in Mesa AZ.

We hope to spend many happy years together. We both love to travel and especially love to camp. Randy won't fly though, but we can take lots of road trips. I hope all of my family can accept him, (I really think most of them do) and wish us much happiness together.

Congratulations!

To mom - she deserves to be happy and share her life with someone. Mom, I am so glad you were able to find someone to love and to love you back. I am happy that you have life to look forward to and plans for your future. Seeing you depressed and feeling so empty for so long, I now realize how great it is to have witnessed the transformation that you have gone through in the past year and a half. While no one will replace Dad, there is always room for new members. Everyone needs a place to be, someone to love them, and most of all a family who cares. Isn't this what families are for? The one thing that is also neat to have experienced is the way Savannah has grown attached too. It makes me so happy to see how Savannah just loves having a grandpa. It will be the only one she'll know and for that I am appreciative of the relationship she will gain with Randy.

Love to you both and the best of luck.

Love,
Tammy

Five Years.....

Today I am remembering my soulmate and father of my children. Alex left me 5 years ago today. I would like to write some of my memories of him.

He grew up in a home with no electricity or running water. The house only had two bedrooms and 10 kids had to share one bedroom. He made his own toys from old sardine cans with strings so he could put them together and make a train. He loved sledding and he finally got a sled for Christmas one year. He was very talented. He was very good with wood working. His woodworking tools are in the shop and when I see them, I kind feel like they are lonely since he has not used them for so long. He never forgot a special occassion. At work I always received flower or candy. He would send flowers to my mother on her birthday and anniversary. He loved giving to others. I could always count on him to fix anything that needed fixing. He loved to tease and sometimes his teasing was taken the wrong way, but that was one of his ways to show his love. He was a very hard worker and would work 8 hours or more a day at his day job and come home and work in the yard until it got dark. He enjoyed working the soil. He could not wait for Spring to start planting his garden, and his garden was wonderful. He was getting ready to plant his garden when his life was cut short. He had been working on the tractor just the night before his death. He had planned to go get manure to fertilize his garden. He was going to do that after the trip we were supposed to take with Marty and his family. He had gone through two terrible surgeries on his knees and nearly died the last time. He got a settlement and he didn't get to use most of it. He got a 4-wheeler for his birthday less than a month before he died. So every April 9th and every Easter or Good Friday brings back the memories of his death. But the memories of his life are good and he certainly left a good example for those he left behind. He taught his kids how to work hard and the value of hard work. He left his gift for fixing things to his sons. He can rest in peace knowing that all of children have turned out to be outstanding citizens and all of them have succeeded in life as kids to be very proud of. So honey, know that I miss you and I will always remeber what you did for us. I must go on with life and I am sorry yours was caught short.

A Little Utah Humor

You Know You're From Utah If....

1. You go to the duck pond to feed the seagulls.
2. Green Jell-o with cabbage mixed in doesn't seem strange.
3. You can pronounce Tooele.
4. The U is not just a letter... and neither is the Y.
5. You have actually eaten funeral potatoes.
6. You've gotten both heat and frost burns off your car's door handle in the same month!
7. You are not surprised to hear words like "Darn," "Fetch," "Flip," "Oh My Heck," and "Shoot."
8. Your tulips get snowed on three times after they come up and twice more after they bloom.
9. The largest liquor store is the state government.
10. You can go skiing and play golf on the same day.
11. 30% humidity is muggy and almost unbearable.
12. You know the difference between a "steak house" and a "stake house."
13. You've broken down on the highway and somebody stops to help you.
14. You can see the stars at night.
15. You were an aunt or uncle before you were three.
16. You have more children than you can find biblical names for.
17. Your family considers a trip to McDonald's a night out.
18. You feel guilty when you watch Monday Night Football.
19. Your kids believe the deer hunt is a national holiday.
20. You drink Coke from a brown paper bag.
21. At least two of your salad bowls are at the homes of neighbors.
22. There is a similarity between a ward basketball game and the L.A. riots.
23. You think Jack Daniels is a country-western singer.
24. You negotiate prices at a garage sale.
25. You can make Jell-O salad without the recipe.
26. You've heard about BYU football in a testimony meeting.
27. You have two gallons of ice cream in your freezer at all times.
28. Your father-in-law thinks Ronald Reagan was a liberal.
29. A member of your family wrote in Lavell Edwards for president in the last election.
30. Sandals are the best-selling shoes.
31. Hotel rooms all have the Book of Mormon.
32. You buy your wardrobe at the local grocery superstore.
33. You learn about the Mormon Church by taking history in elementary school.
34. You live in a state where Democrats always come in third place, unless a zoo animal is running. Then they come in fourth.
35. Schools stay open, even if two feet of snow falls overnight, but close for the opening of hunting season.
36. People wear shorts and T-shirts if the temperature rises above 32 degrees.
37. People wear socks with their sandals.
38. There is a church on every corner, but they all teach the same thing.
39. The most popular public transportation system is a ski lift.
40. In-state college football rivalries are bigger than the Super Bowl.
41. You don't have to breathe cigarette smoke until you walk outside the building.
42. Every driveway has a mini-van and a pick-up truck.
43. When you buy a new vehicle, cigarette lighters are optional equipment but ski racks are standard.
44. Every time a new family moves into your neighborhood, the local elementary school has to hire a new teacher.
45. Every time a new family moves into your neighborhood, your whole family has to go and meet them the next day, after you helped them unload their moving truck.
46. Your paycheck has an additional 10 percent deduction.
47. More movies are filmed in your town than in Hollywood.
48. You've never had a Mormon missionary knock on your door, unless you are having them over for dinner that night.
49. You make a toast with red punch at your wedding reception.
50. You have more raw wheat stored than some Third World countries.
51. Your idea of a good time is playing Pictionary in the cultural hall.
52. Your idea of a wild party is a six pack of Pepsi and a PG-13 movie.
53. You and all your friends come to your mother for a haircut in her kitchen. [Ed. note/full disclosure: I see nothing odd or provincial about this item. My mother was once a cosmetologist and routinely cut my hair in her kitchen, at least until I stopped cutting my hair.]
54. You measure Kool-Aid by parts per million.
55. You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Utah.

Missing Dad...

Not sure of any other picture of just me and my dad but this is as close as I can get. I miss him. I know I wrote a wonderful story that I read at his funeral but I have no idea where it is now. If any of my family has it, would you please send it to me? I'd like it to have and to post here.

Love you dad,
your little girl.

Remembering Alex

Today would have been Alex' 67th birthday. Today I would like to write some things about him that made him the person he was.

When the kids would come home from school he would asked them how school was and they would say "fine" and then he would ask them "what did you find."

When John said he as going to fix potatoes O'Brien for breakfast he would say, "potatoes for Brian?"

When somebody called on the phone he would say "Go ahead it's your dime."

And when he called somebody, he would "Jello, this is the fruitcake." Or, I tried to call but the line was busy."

Whenever I called him on the phone he would say "Hi Cutie." or "Howdy Doodey."

Sometimes he called me Emma Lu or Eba Kay
He called John Ocho
He called Matt Mathusala
Tammy was Tomasa

I am sure he had names for the other kids and they probably remember what they were but I don't.

He was a very giving person, going all out for Christmas, birthdays and holidays. He always sent me flowers, candy or something to my work when there was a special occasion.

He could fix most anything and could build almost anything. And you could always count on him to help out. He loved his garden and working with the soil. He loved the mornings watching the sun come up and smell of the earth on a Spring morning.

He had faults but all of us do. His biggest fault was not taking care of himself. He would probably be alive today if had of taken care of himself as well as he did others. I don't know where he is, but I know that with all his faults he is in a better place than here and is being rewarded for all he has done while on this earth.

Time and Space and Eternity

As I get older, time goes by way too fast. There is so much we as humans don't know or understand. Even science and the most brilliant minds have not been able to answer the question of where we came from, how the universe was made or where we are going after death. We as humans have only been on the earth for but a speck of time. For billions of years, men did not live here. Our life on this Earth is but a wrinkle in time. A speck divided by many other specks. We are really insignificant when it comes to time. And our lifespan is so short that by the standard of time we really aren't
really on earth long enough to even make a statement.

It does seem strange however, that God would put us here on this Earth and then just let our light die out when we die. Some people have had near death experiences but nobody that has been really dead has come back to tell us what lies beyond. Near death experiences can be explained away by a person being in an altered state due to loss of oxygen or on drugs. Whether you believe in near death experiences or not, there is still no proof that establishes that those experiences existed.

After Alex died, I felt his spirit for about a year after his death. I swear that he even turned on lights, knocked on doors and came to me near my bedside during the night. Now I know longer feel his presence. Perhaps I just imagined him to be near me after his death because I was so alone. This happens to many people after a loved dies I know. If it is just our imagination, do we also make up God because we don't want to be alone in this life? Atheists and Agnostics will say we do. I believe however, there has been too much proof that God really exist.

If a signal can make a cell phone work or send signals to a TV, signals we can't see, then perhaps spirits in heaven can send signals too. When you come to think of it, life is a really a miracle. I am blown away by the fact that they can even get signals way out in space and find out where rockets are. It took until the 20th century to get this all this technology. Why it took so long is not known but maybe God wanted to wait until now because He has more plans for us He will let us know more mysteries in due time.

Religion tries to answer these questions but they do not fit into any scientific study or proof. What I choose to believe is that time always was and will always be. God did not create the world in 6 days; that is only a metaphor; this world is a at least 4.5 billions years old. We know that from science. We know that there is evolution. There is no doubt of it because we have proof through fossils and rocks.

To me, God is the master of all and He created evolution by natural selection. Adam and Eve could not been the first humans on Earth. They are just used as an example. Science have found many human remains that would have had to be way before Adam and Eve. I believe the story of Adam and Eve was just a story, used by God as an example.

There are so many mysteries of life and death and hopefully God will show us the whole truth someday. For me, I just know that there has to have been a blueprint for everything that we have, the universe, life, death, planets and purpose, etc. and even though science has proved many things, they have not proved how all of this happened without some intelligence of things way beyond our realization have happened.

So we as humans really live a very strange life, not knowing for sure what the future will bring or when we will die and where exactly where did we come from. We just need to believe that God will answer these question in time in His time. Right now it all comes down to faith and of knowledge. Faith is good but it must have some knowledge and proof to go along with it. We can't let blind faith lead us in the wrong direction. False prophets can come along and mislead you. Find your own beliefs through study, knowledge, prayer and faith. If the bible says the earth is only 6000 years old, science can prove that is not so. We must realize that what God says is His time not ours. Faith for all its good, must be grounded in proof.

The Strange Case of Randy's Birth

John Minor and Trenna Baer were married on Aug 3, 1939 in Brownsville, PA. where they lived until 1940. Then in early 1941, Trenna left Pennsylvania and traveled to Florida to obtain a divorce. She obtatined the divorce from John Minor in early March. Then on March 21, 1941, she traveled to Morgantown WV and married William Meighen. Meighen then apparantely left for the service in WWII. She then moved in with John Minor in Ohio MI and Florida for 8 months and then returned to Brownsville PA in Feb 1942. On March 13, 1942. she gave birth to Randall Dewayne Minor in Brownsville PA. He was premature and only weighed three pounds. She lived with Minor until Nov 1943 at which time she left Brownsville and went with her child to Portage County in Ohio to live with Meighen where they lived after his return from WWII until 1944.
Court was held in 1945 since both men wanted to claim the child as theirs. The judge awarded custody of the child to Trenna and Meighen stating that the paternity didn't matter because the child was better off with the mother because of his young age. At one time, John Minor took Randy without the the mother's knowlege and she filed a Habeus Corpus. The Meighen's then took Randy to CA until he was five and that was also not approved because they were not supposed to take him out of Pennsylvania.
So was Randall the child of Minor or Meighen? It does appear that Minor is the father because Trenna was living with him while Meighan was in the service. As to why she would because she had divorced him and then went back to Meighan and why he even took her back, is in question. But it does appear that Randall's father was indeed John Minor. One time he was known as Randall Meighen but later his name was changed to Minor. However, his Catholic baptism record shows his name as Randall Meighen.
His mother and stepfather never told Randy much about these early happenings but he always knew that there was something really strange that had gone on in his early life.

Randall did have some visits with his real father and his paternal grandfather who ran the railroad in Brownsville. He has a half sister and brother in the Minor family. In the Meighen  family he has a half sister. On his dad's side, his siblings all live in Brownsfille PA. His half sister on his stepdad's side now lives in NC.

My Other Family: My Brother Chris

My brother Chris was my only biological sibling. He lives in WA and I am sad to say I do not keep up with him very much. I would like in the Family Blog to write more about my siblings; so look for more in the future.
This photo was taken about 1965 around Christmas. He is holding Tina on his lap.

Utah Residency Test

Utah Residency Test

You must be able to answer yes to 10 or more of the following questions to qualify for permanent residency in the state of Utah. Failure to do so qualifies you as a temporary resident only.

Do you have a bumper sticker that says "Families can be Forever"?
Was the mother of the bride pregnant at your wedding?
Did a member of your family write in Lavelle Edwards for President in the last election?
If you shop on Sunday, do you post date the check?
Does your mother have purple or amber plastic grapes in the attic?
Were you an aunt or uncle before you attended kindergarten?
Do you have 2 gallons of ice cream in the freezer at all times?
Do you consider peanut butter on the seat of your car an accessory?
When you take a family to a restaurant, do you ask for extra plates?
Do you consider "dam" a swear word?
Does your family consider a trip to McDonald's a night out?
Do you believe you have to be 18 to order coffee in a cafe?
Are at least two of your salad bowls at neighbor's houses?
Do you think Jack Daniels is a country western singer?
Do you consider your temple recommend a credit reference?
When your ward basketball team plays, is it similar to the L.A. riots?
Do you have an uncontrollable urge to arrive at meetings 5 minutes late?
Did you meet your spouse at BYU or on "Your Mission."
Can you make a Jell-O with fruit salad without a recipe?
Do you bring cola home from the store in a brown paper bag?
Do your children believe that deer hunting is a national holiday?
Do you negotiate prices at a garage sale?
Do you feel guilty when you watch Monday Night Football?
Do you think red punch and green Jell-O are the main ingredients for a successful party?
Do your kids think Jell-O is a major food group?
When you pick someone up at the airport, do you bring at least 1/3 of your relatives and have a family reunion at the gate?
Do you have a "Quiet Book" as part of your library?
Are you embarrassed if any of your children are more than two years apart in age?
Do you say "Gawl", "Heck", or "Fetch" more than once a day?
Do you travel on Morris Air Service at least once a year?
Do you think "Ignernt" means rude?
Does it take more than one car to get all your kids over to Grandma's house?
Do you have any relatives named LaDell, LaVelle, LaDawn, or LaVerle (how about LaDurl)?
Does your 2 year supply of food include more than 40 pounds of candy?
Do you keep a supply of butcher paper on hand to make large "Welcome Home" banners?
Do you refuse coffee but accept all offers of Excedrin?
Do you think it is more prestigious to go to BYU than Harvard?
Do you have relatives in California doing everything they can to "Move Back"?
Do you shop for wedding gifts at D.I?
Does your family take Mormon Tequila to family reunions? (Ingredients of Mormon Tequila: Kool-aid with gummi worm in the bottom.)
Has anybody in your family ever taken Cheerios in a sandwich bag or Tupperware dish to church?
Have you ever made a major purchase at D.I (Couches, appliances, electronics)?

My Kids

I am doing an entry for each of my children.

Tina is my oldest. Born May 7, 1963. She is very talented. She likes a challenge. She is a hard worker and a very thoughtful person. She is a perfectionist, but once she makes up her mind to do something, she does it, nothing stands in her way. She likes to travel, hike and work out. She has a great fasion sense. She is a computer software tester. She lives in Murray UT with her husband Kipp Clark. She has 4 children. Felicia, Brian, Marissa and Dominique. She has a pet lizard who is part of her pet family which includes a cat, Martha and a dog, Rosta. I am proud to be her mother.

Monica

Monica Riehle is the 2nd child. She was born Dec 28, 1964. She is a very talented homeaker and a great mom. She's a good cook and baker. She loves her home and gardening and canning and crafts. She is active in the Mormon church and church activities. Her family is very important to her. She is a kind and thoughtful daughter. She lives in Tremonton with her husband Jay Riehle. She has 5 children: J.J., Andy, , Peter who is serving an LDS mission TN, Alex and Lacey. They have a cat name Kit Kat. She works at school lunch as a lunch lady. J.J. is now married and lives in Indiana. He has a son (Monica's first grandchild) named Rocky who is at this writing 6 months old.

John

John is my third child. Born August 10, 1967. He is a very special kid. He has a very good memory. He can remember dates and events better than anyone. We always ask him if we need to remember something. He served an LDS mission to San Bernardino/Riverside CA. John works for Albertson's where he has been employed for almost 6 years. They love him there.John is a hard worker and will do anything to help you. He is married to Kathy and they always dress alike and we call them the Twins. He works a Albertson's and they really like him there. He is very compulsive obsessive which is good sometimes because he always makes sure to check everything out. His favorite thing to do is eat out and go on Walker runs with his long-time friend Scott Jessop. Also he has another friend named John and he and Kathy go out with him a lot.

Jennifer is my 4th child. She was born February 13, 1969. She was always a child full of life and humor. She was in the band in High School and Bruinettes drill team. I was surprised how she could do all those acrobats and dances without any training at all. She lives in Seattle WA with her Husband Robert Moulton and her two kids, Sid and Zoe. She works for the University of Washington where she is the IT person. She is a great daughter and always helps me feel better when I am down. She can speak Chinese and is learning Spanish. She worked for a time in Taiwan. She loves to cook and try out new recipes. She also fixes computers for other people and has helped me fix mine as well. She's really computer savy! She spends free time with her friends "The Geeks" just hanging out.



Marty

"Marty the Mechanic" is my 5th child. He was born August 7, 1970. He was a very good baby. He is a very smart person and a "thinker." He is a very good and thoughtful son. His hobby is old trucks. He likes to photograph them and is very sentimental about them. Since Dad has died, he has kept me together. He is just like his Dad in his talents and can fix anything. I have had to call on him many times to help me. In fact he is kind of the family patriarch now and helps the family when we really need it. He works for Mucdock Hyundai. He is the best mechanic Hyundai ever had. He even got recognized and received a big bonus. He likes to broaden his horizons and wants to take a computer class. He is married to Cherise Campbell from Idaho and they have 3 children: Contessa, Cherokee and Chevy, and are expecting another this summer after 11 years since the last one.


Tammy
Tammy is my 6th child. She was born October 11, 1972. She is a very sweet and loving person. She is quiet but friendly. She will do anything to help me. Her family means everything to her. She works for the State of Utah as an Accountant. She has come so far in her life and has grown so much. She lives in Eagle Mtn Utah with Charlie Bennett, her husband and her two boys Michael and Jacob. She and Charlie have a little girl named Savannah. She looks just like Tammy. She is a very good mother and very devoted to her family.






Matthew
Matt is the baby of the family. He was born August 30, 1980 after a difficult birth. He didn't like to be separated from his family for even a second. He had a hard time in school because he suffered separation anxiety. He like his brother Marty and his Dad is a mechanic and works at Rogers Automotive. He looks so much like his Dad that my heart sometimes stops when I see him because I think Alex has come to life. He is married to Kelly Jo Grace and they have two cute little girls not even 12 months apart named MattieJo and Kinely Marie. And Matt is a great father. He just takes right over, changes diapers, feeds the kids and he has so much patience. Of course all fathers these days seem to be so much better in helping with kids these days. But mothers have to work so they are responsible for more. My husband never helped me much with the kids when they were little. It was just a given that mom's stayed homa and tended the kids and cleaned etc, while the dad's went to work and earned the living.