Our Christmas Morning Experience

We had a great Christmas together with our family. For the first time in two years, we had the whole family together. We truely are blessed.

SNC Music

Merry Christmas everyone.  Last night while out visiting with some friends, they showed me a video that I think you will like.  It is performed by an acapella group named "Straight No Chaser" and is a rather unique rendition of the old Christmas favorite "The 12 Days of Christmas."  Check it out below but first pause the background music at the bottom of this blog.

Straight No Chaser - 12 Days of Christmas

The week of Christmas

Well, it is just about time for Christmas and I thought I would tell everyone Merry Christmas. We did not get our cards ready this time, so hope you all have a great Christmas. Things have been pretty busy, getting Brett home, buying new clothes for him and trying to get him ready for school on top of Christmas shopping, oh and working too. So I have not even had time to bake goodies this year. We went down to Provo and Orem on Sunday morning and had dinner with Grandma and Grandpa J. It was crazy to have everyone there, but the food was good and so was the company. We opened "White Elephant" gifts and the first gift I got was Nose hair trimmers. I don't think I really wanted those. Thanks Brant for taking them off my hands. I hope you enjoy them. I have pictures from the party, but Stephen took them so I will try to get some posted later. Then we went to Grandma and Grandpa H. and had dessert. Great cake recipe, thanks Pam. We all love the death-by-chocolate bundt cake. It was a great time and we all enjoyed the visit. Now on to the rest of the week. Christmas Eve at Keli's house and Christmas day at our home. More to follow on the fun we will have. Merry Christmas to everyone.

Family update

Well, it has been a long two years and it has finally come to an end Brett came home last night. We were all so excited to be at the airport to pick him up. It was really crazy and quite hectic for all at the airport, but there was so much excitement that who cared how chaotic it was. It took for ever to get the luggage, but finally we were on our way home. It was so nice to have almost all our family there. Unfortunately Adam was unable to attend due to school (we missed you Adam), but is was fun anyway. On to dinner and lot of pizza. We ran into the missionaries in our area and invited them to join our noisy group. Fun was had by all. Today we spent time at the mall trying to re-outfit Brett with some new clothes. I am sure there will be many more days spent at the mall. But for now welcome home to Brett!!!!

Can't wait!!!!

Well, for all who cares, we are anxiously waiting for the return of our missionary, Brett. It has been a long two years and we are so excited for it to be over. There has been so much change in our family in the last two years. Erik finally finished most of the basement and it is nice and cozy to welcome Brett home. We have new grandchildren, Deegan and Cullen. It is so exciting to have our children and grandchildren so close that we can see them anytime we want. Thanks Keli and Katie and Stephen for not going too far away. We hope you can stay around here forever. 6 grandchildren, all who have changed in two years that Brett won't recognize them and they were so young they won't know who Brett is for a while. But I am sure they will come around. Who doesn't love Buddha!!!!Anyway, the countdown is on and we have 6 days left.

Montana Reunion

It's always fun to reminisce and visit with old friends. Last night I had the opportunity to spend a few hours with some old freinds that we made while living in Montana between 1985 and 1991. Some we have kept in contact with through the years, others this was the first reunion in nearly 20 years and still others this was the first time getting acquainted. The reunion was held at the home of Ron Frost whom I had not met before last night. They had moved from Montana only a few months prior to our arriving there, so we shared many of our friends. I offer my sincere thanks to the Frosts for opening up their home for this occasion. In attendance were the Frosts, Yipes, Bargers, Huggards, Parkers, Andersons, and Garretts. Included are a few pictures taken of some of our friends.

Another August weekend

Lot of changes happening this weekend. I know it is only Saturday and the weekend is nowhere near over, but we are already in full swing with what is going on. Both Myrna and I took Friday off from work to go help Katie and Adam move into their new home in Providence, UT. We went to Providence Thursday night and spent the night at a very nice Bed and Breakfast called the Providence Inn. It was originally built as a stone walled LDS church and has now been converted into the B&B. The rooms there are decorated themes, and we stayed in their New Orleans Room. Attached are some pictures of the B&B as well as the room we stayed in. They have purchased a cute home in the heart of Providence, which is just south of Logan. The house was originally built around the turn of the century I am told, but was totally remodeled inside only a few years ago. It sits on about a half acre lot and the back yard has fruit trees (apple, peach, apricot, plum, and pear) as well as a garden with grapes, raspberries and strawberries. I even noticed a currant bush loaded with plump black currants. The whole place has tremendous potential and will be a lot of work to keep up, but a lot of joy to them I'm sure. I've placed a few pictures of her house and back yard. While in Logan, we had an opportunity to join some long lost best friends for dinner. Mark and Leisa Firth were some of our most cherished friends when we lived in California (1991-1994). We were both Air Force Officers and lived just blocks from each other. While our friendship never wained, we had not seen each other since we both left California in 1994. The reunion was a wonderful treat to end our day on and we look forward to being able to spend time with them again in the future.

Ogden Valley Baloon Festival

Well I guess it's been a while since we have done anything interesting since we haven't posted anything since July. Yesterday we (or maybe I should say "I") did have a little fun when Steve and I went to the Ogden Valley Baloon Festival. This is a three-day event held in Eden, UT which provided a spectacular view of hot-air balloons from around the region. Steve invited me to go with him since he wanted to go and take photos of the baloons etc. Even though I have attended these types of events before, I do get a kick out of being there and watching the inflation of the baloons and watching them rise into the air. The day was beautiful with very little wind to disrupt the event. I have included a few pictures that we took to show you what went on. The part Steve and i attended was the Saturday morning baloon launch and competition. Later in the evening was to be a baloon glow, where the baloons were inflated at night and tethered to the ground. The light generated inside the baloon by the propane heaters illuminates the balloon which gives it a spectacular glowing appearance in the dark. We gathered up most of the family and went back to see it. Unfortunately the wind was blowing too hard to allow the glow to happen. it was too bad because I think the grandkids would have really enjoyed seeing it.

"Let's Reminisce!"

Come out, come out, wherever you are!

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and one of us (Erik and Myrna) had together. It doesn't matter if you knew us a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty fun to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

Annual Star Valley Male Bonding Trip

I guess I have been a little remiss in keeping up with the goings on in our lives, so I would like to update everyone with the last event in our lives. Actually, this is kind of a one-sided entry, because it involves Erik and a son and son in law. From the time I can nearly remember, my Grandpa Gardner would come to Utah and pick up my brother and me to take us with him on a fishing trip to Star Valley, Wyoming. As a youngster this was the highlight of my summer because it was nearly the only time I would ever get to go fishing. I never knew the impact those trips would have on my later life. After nearly a 20-year hiatus following the death of my grandfather, My son Steve asked me to take him to Star Valley to go fishing upon graduation from High School. That was 6 years ago and we have begun to re-establish that tradition. As far as I know, my family now has been fishing the rivers of Star Valley for six generations. The fishing is usually pretty good, but even when it isn't the memories generated as a result make it a worthwhile experience. I look forward to the day when I can repeat the experience with my grandchildren and let them walk the banks of the Salt River, Snake River and Grey's river.

I close this entry with a few pictures of our recent trip and a quote from author Norman McLean
who wrote one of my favorite books/movies, "A River Runs Through It." It describes the way I feel about this experience

Now nearly all those I loved and did not understand when I was young are dead, but I still reach out to them.

Of course, now I am too old to be much of a fisherman, and now of course I usually fish the big waters alone, although some friends think I shouldn't. Like many fly fishermen in western Montana where the summer days are almost Arctic in length, I often do not start fishing until the cool of the evening. Then in the Arctic half-light of the canyon, all existence fades to a being with my soul and memories and the sounds of the Big Blackfoot River and a four-count rhythm and the hope that a fish will rise.

Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs.

I am haunted by waters.

Alaska Trip Follow-up

It's been a couple weeks now since our return from the trip to Alaska. Because of the hectic nature of our last stop and final return we did not get the final chapter of our trip recorded for our readers. Following a day of slowly entering the Tracy Arm Fjord to see the Sawyer Glacier we began our journey to the final destination; Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The journey was a full night and most of a day getting to Victoria. We arrived as about 5:00 P.M. which left us with little time to see much while there. After disembarking from the ship we caught a charter bus into the heart of town and spend the few hours we had there walking the streets of downtown Victoria. As cities go, Victoria is a beautiful place (what we saw of it) Impressive to me is the fact the it has the old "downtown" look and feel to it. By that I mean you still walk the streets shopping rather than hiding in a mall with a million stores that are the same stores you see in every mall in North America over and over again. Not far from the shopping was the British Columbia Parliament building. Since we were there as dusk melted into night, we watched as the Parliament building became lit up as if Christmas was only a day away. There are times when Christmas type lighting seems to fit throughout the entire year; this is one. The building was spectacular particularly when seen from a distance. As I mentioned, we were only able to stay on shore for a short time and so about as quickly as we arrived, we had to return. From my perspective, one of the highlights of the trip came as we made our journey back to the ship. When we went to catch our bus ride back to the ship, to our chagrin, we found a line of anxious people snaking around the corner from the bus stop waiting for the same ride we hoped to catch. Oh, did I mention, I really hate waiting in lines. Anyway, as we made our way toward the end of the meandering mass of tourists, we noticed a young man riding a bicycle driven rickshaw with seats for four. Since it was only Myrna, Deryl and Jodi in our group, we decided to hire him to return us to the ship. Even though we had already paid for our bus transport, not having to wait in line was well worth the extra few dollars to have a leisurely ride back to the ship and no wait. The ride took about 20 minutes but was extremely pleasant. Our driver took us through some of the residential neighborhoods and past some other interesting sites that we would not have had the opportunity to see if we had bussed it back. He was a one-man history book that was as pleasant as it was engaging. I really enjoyed that little self-made excursion.

Once back on board, we began the preparations for arriving again in Seattle and departing ship. It was kind of disappointing to think that the trip was nearly over and we would have to get back to the real world of work and worry, but all in all we had had a very pleasant trip. Visiting with the family for a week was at times a little strained, but I'd say was at least 90% enjoyable. I do enjoy getting together with our extended family whether on the Jorgensen or Hawkins sides. I am extremely fortunate that we have a family that loves one another (even if we don't always agree with one another) and has no problem spending time together. I consider my life blessed by each and every one of them. I look forward to the next opportunity to spend another quality experience with each and every one of them.

Rather than posting our few pictures of Victoria etc. I decided to post a slide show of the entire cruise to conclude the postings about our trip. Oh, did I mention, Our next trip will be on land rather than sea. :-)

Tracy Arm Fjord

It’s Wednesday, 14 May and I find myself sitting outside on the deck of our room as we slowly enter the Tracy Arm Fjord. It is approximately 42 degrees outside, and the precipitation drizzles just enough to get you wet to the bone after a while without you realizing it. Seventy five percent of the year the weather is like this, either in the form of rain or snow. With the weather like it is, I can see why so few people wish to make this part of the world their home. Nonetheless, there is a striking beauty to thei the scenery and even as cold and uncomfortable as the weather makes it, it is beautiful. The fjord is said to drop down from each shore to approximately 1000 feet. The walls of the fjord are virtually vertical and made of pure granite. As we pass by these sheer cliffs, you can see the horizontal striations that were made when this area was covered in ice and the Tracy Arm Glacier extended out to what is now the open sea. Even though the cliffs are made of solid granite, they bear the black stains of a millennium of runoff water and other growths on the rocks. With the overcast weather we are experiencing it is a little difficult to really appreciate the grandeur of these mountains but they have a certain steely ruggedness that must be seen to be understood. As we pass the stately walls of this fjord I can’t help but be taken in by the hundreds, if not thousands of waterfalls that fall hundreds of feet from the feet of melting snow and ice fields that shroud the cliff tops. Many of these cascades fall in the form of rushing torrents, while so many more appear as thin threads of water dissecting each cliff wall. I wonder if they ever cease, or is the snow so everlasting that they remain year-round. Occasionally punctuating these encroaching walls is another prehistoric glacial sluice that extends into the frozen interior. Unable to see the head of these bowl shaped canyons, I can only surmise that they extend into the eternities. But reality bites and I conclude that another world possibly never seen by the eyes of man exists where life and death goes on and the measure of creation is repeated annually with the seasons.

God Lives here. I am humbled by the grandeur of his blessings, large and small.

Day 3 of our trip

Well, the trip is progressing nicely and we are having a good time. I must admit though, that the logistics of trying to keep track of everyone and ensure that all have a quality experience has bee a bit tiring. I guess that goes with the territory when you are family.

Let's see, if I start where I think I left off on the last entry, we were just wrapping up our evening in Seattle and getting ready to depart for Alaska. After spending the night in Seattle, our time for boarding the ship was not to be until a few hours later. As a result, Myrna and Pam decided to walk into town to do a little shoe shopping and I took off back to the Pike's Market to get a few more pictures. I was so impressed with the amount of flowers etc. that I just had to get some photos. After returning to the hotel, it was getting close to time to check out. As usual, Grandma and Grandpa had gone down to the lobby early to wait for our rides. Shortly after they got to the lobby, some of the rest of the family began showing up. Once we had all checked out, we began preparing for the trip to the ship. The trip from our hotel was rather amusing if I do say so myself. I guess the plan had been to have Myrna's brother Deryl come with his family to help shuttle us to the ship. While waiting for them to show up, someone noticed that there was a promotional table set up in the lobby for the Accura car company; they had offered to take anyone for a ride in and around town in order to demonstrate their cars. Someone in the group decided to see if they would take us to the pier along with Deryl so we ended up splitting up the family in I believe three different cars to get us to the pier. After a short ride and after filling out some customer surveys, we all arrived at the pier. I seemed to me that we went through a lot of hassle just to save a few dollars. Anyway, we all were able to get on the ship without much more trouble.

The ship finally left port somewhere around 4:00 that afternoon and we were on our way. For the rest of the day, we pretty much just sat around and ate dinner.

Sunday saw us traveling up the west coast of Canada toward the Inner passage of Alaska. Just as has been my experience in the past, those days when the ship is just traveling, without any stops become rather long and tiresome for me. It just seems that there is nothing of interest to occupy my time so I end up just feeling bored. Fortunately, because it was Sunday, we decided to hold a little family devotional service. The service lasted about an hour and was held in Lonnie and Claudia's cabin. These cabins are quite small and are definitely not designed to hold 11 full grown adults, but we made due with what we had. The meeting was a nice diversion from the materialistic attitudes that prevail on ship and I appreciated the opportunity. Lonnie spoke to us about symbols in the church and the role they play in helping to remind us of the important parts of the gospel. We all had an opportunity to share out thoughts and thus we sort of were able to share a little of our testimonies with each other.

Other than the devotional, the day was pretty much filled with chatting with each other, eating and napping. This all might sound good to some, but I just am too nervous to do much of that. Maybe, I am just an undiagnosed ADD :-).

We did catch the opening welcome show that night and got to hear a short monolog from a comedian named Steve Moris who is also a pretty good musician. I guess he has performed with the likes of the Beach Boys, Cat Stevens and others. Anyway, he was quite good and we decided to see his full show on Monday night (more on that latter).

Once Monday morning rolled around, after stuffing myself with breakfast, we pretty much just hung around preparing to arrive in Juneau. We had been experiencing some pretty rough seas up until we actually entered the Inner Passage of Alaska so it was now a pleasant feeling for all of us to not have our stomachs trying to figure out which direction was up. We all got nauseous to some degree, but I think Deryl probably had the most trouble. Now that we are on calmer water, I think we are all OK. Once we had docked in Juneau, I think the people on the ship we in a mad dash to exit the ship. We were all looking for some solid ground to get our feet on. Most of us went ashore and spent a few hours look around in Juneau. While it was nice to get off for a while, I was a little disappointed that most of what we saw was geared to the tourists. Just tons of gift shops etc. We split up and went our separate ways so as not to encumber other members of the family with everyone want to go different directions. Myrna, Curt and I went together and started walking the streets. We hiked up a few blocks and were able to visit a Russian Orthodox Church that is supposed to be the oldest one in the state of Alaska. It was very small, but we went inside and got to speak with the Priest who runs the place. It was rather interesting and I would consider it the highlight of the day.

After Monday had come to a close we pretty much went to dinner and followed that up with the comedian show that I mention a few paragraphs back. This guy Steve Moris is really funny, His humor was a little irreverent, but I enjoyed it just the same. I kept looking down at Grandma and Grandpa to see if they were enjoying the show, but I kept seeing unemotional faces for the most part. I think his type of humor just didn't suit them much. Myrna was so impressed with him that she bought a DVD of the show and had him autograph it for her. We will have it available for the kids to watch when we get home.

Well we are now docked in Skagway, and will be going out in a few hours to see the area again. Later we will be taking a train ride from Skagway to what they say is the top of the world. I am looking forward to the trip since it will take us away from much of the commercial confusion that is a tourist city. All in all, we are having an enjoyable time bu miss our kids and grandkids. I'll try and get another post out this evening before we depart skagway, but if I don't, It'll have to wait until we get to Ketchikan.

Our First Day Out

Hi Everyone

One day down and seven more to go. The day started off with a ride to the airport with Katie and Deegan. It was a relatively uneventful trip but we had a good time chatting on the way. It always seems that we forget something whenever we go on a trip and this one was no different. I left my sunglasses in the car and Myrna left her sweater in the car too. Anyway, we will be alright without them.

After a short two-hour flight we landed in the Seattle Airport and were picked up by a nice limo (yes this is the first time I've been in one) that took us to our hotel. The hotel is a very nice 5-star hotel, but we unfortunately got a room that looks right into the parking garage. Oh well, the room is nice and we should be comfortable.

Once we had dropped off our bags, we took a short walk to Pike's Market where everything under the sun is sold and peddled. The market has been made famous by one of the fish markets there. when a person purchases a fish (usually salmon) they have a guy out grabbing it for you and he throws to the person who will prepare it to be taken home. It is really impressive
to watch how easily they throw the fish around without dropping any of them.

Since it was shortly after lunch time when we arrived we decided to have lunch at the Pikes market. There are all sorts of little places to eat there and we just picked a nice sandwich place to eat. The crab salad sandwich and clam chowder there was great.

The other thing that was really impressive was the thousands of flowers that were being sold there. The whole thing was really beautiful. For as long as you walked down the market corridor you could see buckets upon buckets of flowers. Most of the flowers seemed to be tulips, but there were all sorts of different varieties. Additionally, they had one of the best produce markets I have every seen. There was every kind of fruit and vegetable you could think of. The entire experience was really awesome.

Once everyone from the family arrived, our last stop was at the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. The food was good and I feel pretty full at this moment.

We are now back to the room and looking forward to a good night's sleep before going to the ship tomorrow.