Momma Linda: May 2020

This really isn't about the the Pandemic. Gratefully, our lives have not been affected negatively. I still have a job. Mike has finally been convinced that he should wear a mask when he goes shopping. Which he does a LOT. Such a shopper. Food, construction supplies, etc. We have NOT, however, been able to obtain more Clorox wipes or hand sanitizer. So we just wash our hands a lot and use Lysol cleaner around the house and car.

The photo above is raspberry blooms and buds. Soon!

There's nobody IN the library except us workers. Faculty are working from home. Occasionaly administrators come in. Meetings go on via Zoom. Lots of meetings and lots of webinars. And we get to help a few people remotely via chat and phone and individuals (very few) can still check out items and we prepare and place them for front door pick up. A lot of shelves have been shifted and now they are shelf-reading--making sure everything was put back in proper order.

Shadows on the front porch. One Iris. On stand of Iris Leaves. I just thought they made a rather striking pose one morning when I went out to get the newspaper.

Speaking of newspaper, we still subscribe to our little local one. It's hardly a paper at all, though. All the news is about COVID-19 and very depressing. Mike and I continue to subscribe only because he loves the sudoku and I love the comics, the daily crossword and crypto-quote puzzle. I do read the headlines and Dear Abby. There ARE no sports, so that's kind of missing. It's worth it while I'm still paying an "introductory" special price I currently pay because I cancelled a while back and we just got Berenice's when she was done with it. That itty bitty paper wanted me to pay over $300 per year for that subscription when it was time to renew. No way was that itty bitty thing worth about a dollar a day. So I just quit. But it's back now. We'll see how long it lasts. I just don't relish the thought of obtaining my news off the computer. Or even television. There's bias everywhere (yes, even in a newspaper. I know.).

One Sunday afternoon (March 24) after home church, Mike and I went for a drive up to the temple. We were just getting into the swing of things and getting to go more regularly and often when the Pandemic hit in March. Well, we were thinking in March, "Gee, we didn't get to the temple last month--we should go!" and then it was too late. We drove up there to see what flowers were in bloom since the last time we drove up there the tulips were spectacular. This time there were pansies (not very many) and some columbine. Last year I helped weed and there were more flowers. I think my weeding was later in the spring/early summer. I did read a nice article about a couple who, even though the temples were closed, still made an appointment to go there, to enjoy the spirit that the temple can bring into your life. She and her husband would just go and spend time together, visiting in the parking lot or walking the grounds. We merely drove through the parking lot.

Last weekend was Memorial Day weekend. We did not travel anywhere on the 24th or 25th. We're trying to NOT go many places because over the next two weeks we are going to try and stay healthy and away from crowds and possible contamination since we're working really hard at organizing a Mike and Linda Liebhardt Family Reunion. June 15 through 20 in Lydia's Canyon just outside of Glendale, Utah. We have rented 2 cabins from Mercy Stout, Gail and Seth will bring their travel trailer and we'll all fit. We are getting very excited. There's 24 of us!! And the 24 of us were supposed to all meet up in Orlando at Disney World for this week. But COVID-19 has prevented that from happening, so this is our substitute vacation. It will still be fun to be all together for games and food and fun. Plus a couple of Day Trips.

I had a lot of very black bananas in my freezer (which I cleaned out and organized on May 23) so I made a big batch of banana bread. Most of the loaves I delivered on Sunday to the new mommies in our ward. There are three! And one more expected in August. That's highly unusual in our ward. We also have had one death this past week, Leone Wade. She passed on Thursday after having a stroke.

The week of May 18 through 22, I took Mom to a series of dr appointments. After she leaves the premises, both she and Dad have to stay in their rooms under quarantine, so we even took Dad one day, drove through Zaxby's and got lunch for us all after Mom had some blood work done in a dr office while Dad and I waited in the car. We ate our lunches at my house, got to visit with Mike and Eric, and THEN I took them back to Brookdale. We are hoping that they will be able to begin some small group activities (like scenic drives) very soon. It's not going to be Walmart trips, but it's a start. I would NOT want Mom going into Walmart on her own! It's a busy, crazy mess there.

This was after Botox injections in her left side of her face. This one wasn't as good as the first one Chad Anderson, MD, did for her a couple of months ago. He gave her more this second time so it would last longer, but the results are not favorable at all. Poor Mom. She has bruising, cannot close here eyeball all the way so it gets dry and sore, and she even has bruising on her jaw. She's been biting/chewing on her inner cheek.... Ugh. Just not really good. He'll need to do smaller doses from now on. How many times has Mom said, "I'm just not going to do this anymore. This is stupid." But then it does act nice for a while and she forgets that it does bring relief for a period of time.
So maybe it IS worth it after all.

During this spring, the peonies in our back yard looked lovely. So did the Irises. These peaked about mid-May and were just spectacular.

May 16 through 18, Mike and I were in Nevada at Gail and Seth's. When we got there, and for Sunday, the air was crisp and clear. You could see for miles. By Monday, the wind kicked up and blew dust all over. The photo below is just the Lamoille Highway between Elko and Spring Creek. There are mountains behind that thick air! And further south and east of Spring Creek on our drive home Monday, there was a nasty dust storm we had to drive through. It was scary!

This was the dust storm, below. It was blowing straight across the road, we had to go slowly since visibility was close to nothing for a small portion. But IN that small portion as we crept through (center line was visible), a big semi was pulled over, others were, too, in the opposite direction. Then, after we emerged, many emergency vehicles were heading right back into the storm, so something must have happened. The last one was an ambulance. I'm so grateful we passed through safely. Like I said, it was very scary.

While in Spring Creek, we celebrated Jonathan's birthday a bit early. He turned 11 on May 20. He got some nerf stuff from us and they all practiced hitting the target.

Gail made cupcakes in her little convection oven, so I wanted to see if I could see them rise. And I did. They rose a bit too much. Gail has silicone muffin holders, so no paper is needed. She just filled them right in the little oven tray/pan and baked them like that. No muffin tin, no paper liner. Her oven is like a Seven-In-One by Emeril Lagasse. Microwave, toaster, toaster oven, convection oven, air fryer, rotisserie, slow cooker. They really like it since the oven in this rental stinks when they turn it on, so they use this bitty one all the time. I may need to find one when we are "between kitchens" during the remodel.

Isn't this the cutest little honey bear you've ever seen?

Sunday afternoon at Gail's, they took us on a drive up their beautiful Lamoille Canyon. It's a Glacial bowl area and rugged mountains. Lots of people were there trying to spot Big Horn Sheep on the cliff sides. There's still a lot of snow, but the creek in the canyon was so pretty, and there were waterfalls and ponds. There are campgrounds and day use areas, trail heads for a multitude of hikes. It's a popular area and I can see why. We were very impressed by its beauty and my pictures do not do it justice.

Tickle match! I think Caroline is losing.

I baked this lovely rhubarb and strawberry pie to take to Gail and Seth's.

Cute little puppy, San. Matt and Eric have a puppy and that weekend they were able to take her home to St. George. They bought her from a kennel (puppy farm? It was a nice place, actually) nearby and went to visit her quite a few times before she was weaned and ready to go to her new home. Matt took a week off work to help her ease into the transition! She is a Husky, and all puppies are cute.

We weren't hunting deer. We were hunting for a place to gather with our family this summer since our Disney World plans have all gone kaput. Thanks to COVID-19. Ugh. All those years of planning and clearing our calendars 2 years out, spending and shopping for deals. Airline tickets purchased, Hotel rooms reserved, Disney park passes bought.

So now we punt.

Camping, you say? Why not! But only in style and comfort. I'm shopping for camp trailers to rent now. And we are hunting for places to take them so we can all be together for that week.

Mike and I went on a drive Sunday afternoon. Here are some of the shots from that drive over the mountain.

Blowhard, top of Cedar Mountain.

Zion Overlook

Summit.

Near Cedar Breaks turn off at Summit.

Forest Service Rd 055, Deer meadow/?

Pine wood resort area. cool entry to private camp.

Red Canyon, Near Bryce Canyon.

Ruby's Inn RV and Camp ground. Three reserved spots on the left.

Little lake/pond

Gnarley Pine

Pine Lake

pine lake

Pine Lake

Red Canyon , again.

Panguitch had DOZENS of these flowering crabapple trees all over town. Peak bloom.

Forest Service north ofWhite Bridge Campground. Not much of a road.

The rest of the photos are from Zion National Park. My keyboard seems to be dying so I will not type any more. Enjoy the view. We did.
"Balm and healing for the soul."