Gracie Frampton

Gracie Frampton entered this world today @ 4:00 pm weighing in at 6 lbs 13 oz & 18 inches long. Kam & Nikki are the proud parents & Kam, Sr. is the proud grandpa. We'll add pictures as soon as we get some. This makes their family a total of 5! Poor Kam is overrun with girls! He'll do great!

Life is strange!

I've decided when you think life is "normal" something happens. I'm pretty sure no one reads this blog but - ah what the heck! I've talked to Rob almost daily since he went to Oregon. It sounds like he spends a TON of time playing video games while his dad works & the tree-hugger neighbor complains about Rob riding the motorcycle. Poor kid! I miss him but try to keep moving forward.

This has been a tough week for me. I'm not sure why but everything overwhelmed me to the point of tears. I hate that! Our PG house got broke into which is sad because there is NOTHING there to steal! I really wish we could get the dang thing sold. That would be a HUGE help! My car has a vibration that happened over the weekend & it was parked so I'm not sure what is going on with it. My hours at Covey Center has drastically been reduced but it's summer so I should be grateful, I guess.

I helped search for a 95 year old man on Saturday. He is OK but he had gone for a walk & never returned on Friday. He was eventually found down a steep embankment at the mouth of Provo Canyon with several broken bones. I actually had my picture in the paper over the search though. At least I felt as though I was helping someone!

We have the Lehi Stock Parade on Thursday & I'm going to talk to Springville High School tomorrow with Kelsey to try to take care of some bullying tactics being used by a few girls in the FFA. I knew this was going on all school year but thought it was being taken care of. Well, after tomorrow, these girls better hold on to their hineys! They will be on record now. I can't believe the teacher that Kelsey talked to about the problem all year didn't even suggest she talk to a counselor or do something about it. GRRRRR - it ticks me off! Oh well, all I can do is move forward & learn from the past.

My work laid off three people last week. One being a co-worker of mine in the accounting office that I'm really sad about. One being a long-timer there so it really makes me wonder about how stable I am. The other was the call center supervisor(?). Two of these were single moms. I really wonder if they have something against single mothers sometimes!

Anyway, lots of stress with no means of release right now. Hopefully soon, things will get better. All I can do is keep praying for knowledge of why this is going on.

I now have 16 hens (pullets) so if things get tough, we'll at least have eggs! Even if we need to barter with them, I'm okay with that. I'm trying to become self-sufficient in my own way.

Dad had his cast taken off his arm but it looks really sore to me. I want to help him without offending him but I think he's a bit frustrated about the whole situation as well. Kam made a beautiful coat rack (mom's idea) for father's day. It is really neat! It can hold 18 coats & has "antennas" for hats. It's made out of oak & should last forever because he built it so well. Well,that's all I know right now. Have a wonderful day!

Is it really Tuesday?!

Friday night we went to dinner with my family (Mom, Dad, Char, Jared, Jenn, Rob, & Kam). After dinner Jenn, Jared, Rob & I went to Wal-Mart for some little things Rob needed for his trip. Jenn needed something too but I can't remember what.

On Saturday, June 6, 2009 I got up and finished washing/drying Rob's clothes. Dreading taking him to the airport! We then decided to go to Jamba Juice & Einstein Bagels instead of IHOP or something like that. We enjoyed each other's company & went to the University Mall to look for a phone cover for his phone. His phone quit working the previous week so I made sure it was working for his six weeks away. While we were at the mall, his father called & yelled at him not to miss his plane so that ruined the mood. I was ticked when I found out!!! We got to the airport in good time & I took a couple of pics so he had something to remember the day & his first plane trip. I was sad he had to do it all alone. I kept reminding him that he was only going to be about 12-13 hours away so if he needed me, I'd be there.

I cried all the way home. I actually almost had to pull over to clear my eyes it was so bad. I really hated this whole idea of him going out of state for two reasons: 1) his dad has threatened to take him away so I would never know where he was for years and, 2) because he had to fly alone. His step-mom (I use this term loosely just because she is married to his father!) is psycho & throws a fit when Rob wants something to eat. I won't deal with her any more because of her fits. I also have had to tell Rob's father that she needs to behave or I do not have to force my son anywhere near her which could interfere with his visitation. I have NEVER denied visitation as long as I know where they live & contact information. I feel it's Rob's right to know if his dad is a drip or a good dad. I have my own opinion. This trip I required proof of a return flight as well. I even checked Google to see if the address they gave me was true. I just can't shake the feeling they are being dishonest sometimes.

After having so many troubles with computers last week, I'm trying to play catch up at work. It's been a joke but I keep trying. I seriously need to take some days off! I think I'm taking 1/2 day off Thursday since the kid that works for me is gone Monday through Wednesday next week. AHHHHHHH how in the crap am I going to deal. I think I may live at work those days!!

Tonight, we tried to get Kelsey's royalty together to discuss what they are planning this year. Every year we have tried to get all the girls and their families together for a "get to know you" meeting. We started this last year and it seems to get the girls that show up a little closer and dispell any misconceptions. This time all of the girls came except Kelsey's 1st attendant who forgot. Each one only brought one family member though so I have a TON of leftover cookies, brownies, and mini cinamon rolls. Ah well, I'll figure out someone to give them to. HA HA.

Well, it's late and I have a ton to do at work tomorrow. Have a great night and keep smiling - it makes people wonder what you're up to!

Glad today is over & misc. stuff.

Today I got to work about 20 minutes early but it didn't do me any good. The silly computers were out so the whole day took everything out of me just to get the bare minimum taken care of. I know tomorrow is going to be bad (that is IF the computers behave)! Maybe I'll try to go in early so I can get more done? I don't know. It depends on whether I can sleep. Ah sleep! What a wonderful, elusive thing! My brain needs to learn how to shut down at night. I try all of the relaxation techniques but only rarely do they work.

The chicks seem to love their new home. It's nice to know that One Ear doesn't seem to be bugging them. Let me explain One Ear to you...he is a cat that has claimed us as his family. I've heard cats do that but I've never really been a cat person. He would hang around our Pleasant Grove, UT home but you couldn't get within ten feet of him. He was really spooky and didn't seem to care for people much. He was also famous for fighting everything that encroached on his territory. There was a day that he was sitting on the back porch, his back leg was several times the normal size, and it had broken open. I had Kam and the kids capture him so we could take him to a vet. I was afraid if we let it go, it would be a slow, miserable death. After quite the fight at the vet and $117, he was on the mend. I still didn't like him much but I'm too soft-hearted I guess. Rob named him One Ear because his ear had been cut in half. Kam was able to give him his meds and slowly we gained his trust. When we moved to Provo, I didn't want him to be left like I think his last owners left him. Therefore, we moved him with us. He now trusts us most of the time and is constantly trying to get into the house. He constantly brings us "presents" at the front door.

Kelsey is in Vernal, UT for the Vernal Stock Show. Rob got his stitches out with my mom's help and then helped dad clean horse manure. He said dad over worked himself and dad said his arm was swollen under the cast. Oh that's another thing...Dad has two broken wrists so we are helping him feed animals.

I feel like I need to let everyone know that even though our finances are ugly, I know Heavenly Father pushed me to move closer to Mom and Dad. There have been so many times that we have been needed to be close that I would be a fool not to recognize His hand in the move. I just need to keep the faith. I think we have our old motor home sold. I made Heavenly Father a promise that I would donate the money to a friend that has cancer. I know he's pretty proud and has a tough time accepting the financial help but this was a promise I made to Heavenly Father so I can't back out of it.

Anyway, I hope you all will have a fantastic day! I hope to be going to sleep soon.

Playday 2009

Yesterday, May 30, 2009 was District 10's Playday. We had to have the sound system set up by 8 am so we got up around 6 am. Rob fed horses and I made sure we had everything ready for the day. Kelsey got up and ready as well. Kam had to work at 4:30 am but had gotten the sound system in the truck the night before. That was a huge help! We also had to take some items up for mom since she is the district secretary.

We got to the arena around 7:30 am. Kam was there and he and Rob got the sound system up. I'm not really sure where Kelsey went since she brought her own car and disappeared after the horses were unloaded. I had been asked to judge the western pleasures so I stayed by the trailer so I didn't pre-judge anyone. Around 8:30 am, I tried to find someone to be my ring steward but it wasn't until I was in the arena & the first group was coming in that Mark Wright came in to help. He had a lot of good questions and was great help! Since he was planning on being in the older pleasure class, he left to warm up his horse & Brent Shelby's daughter (sorry, I can't remember her name) came to help. Again, she had some great questions and was a wonderful help.

Rob traded off between QT and Mr. Belvedere for the speed events. He got 2nd place in pleasure on QT but I can't remember what he got for his speed events. Mr. B blew up on the musical tires & hurt Rob's stitched finger. Rob realized it was his error that freaked Mr. B out so he after getting upset with him for a second, they worked great the rest of the day. Oh, Rob cut his finger 10 days before trying to sharpen it. Luckily, I was home and able to get him to the insta-care. That's another story! He puked in my car & it took Kam hours to get the smell out. Poor kid! He went into shock while we were on our way. He ended up with 2 hidden mattress stiches and 1 regular stitch. The doctor said the hidden mattress stiches were like having 2 each stitch so it was a total of 5 stitches. The doctor was pretty good.

Kelsey was called "crazy" a few times because she rides so well and doesn't seem to have any fear. Luckily, she has a healthy respect for the horses! She rode Lena for most of the events but did tandom barrels with Kam twice. Once with Kam on QT and her on Lena. Once with her on QT and Kam on Mr. B. I do know she got like 5th in pleasure but she was in a REALLY tough class.

I was able to meet some of the "Wasatch Wranglers" from Heber, UT. They are such nice people! I am so glad that a group from Heber decided to join USWRCA! When I started with the riding clubs, there was a Heber team and a Vernal team. Maybe in a few years, Vernal will come back. It's nice to know that there are still people out there who want to do well but their focus is on having fun. Some teams get so competitive that it takes away from the fun. I like to win with the best of them but as I've gotten older, I really don't want to be so pressed with the competition that I forget to have fun.