Surgery went well

The hysterectomy is over and all went well. The Carson City doctor was phenominal. He even asked if he could pray with us twice. We hit it off when he said his family went door to door campaigning for Sarah Palin. Of course since her dad was such a wonderful teacher for Kirsten in 5th grade we held her in high esteem and after hearing her talk. You could tell by their faces that they were awed that their daughter would make it so far on the politcal campaign trail. Miracles never cease to exist. Ben asked me to send pictures of the yard since we finished. Your dad picked a wheel barrel full of watermelon when he got work it may freeze. Now we're not sure how to keep it. Ben made a great drink with watermelon juice and lime juice if I remember right. We may try to freeze a bit of it that way and give away the rest. Your dad is taking good care of me but I felt well enough 3 days later to can zuchini, onions, garlic, tomatoe and crooknecked all together. It is good. Ben asked for pictures of the yard. I'll try to upload them. He did a great job on the sidewalk. We love it.

Canned Meat

This year I have canned a variety of meat. Pork, chicken, beef loin strips, hamburger and sausage. It has been nice just going to the pantry and getting a bottle all precooked. I highly recommend it to anyone. Liz is canning meat and Rachel got a pressure canner and is going to do elk. Jon got his elk with a bow this year. I love getting a great sale on meat and putting it in jars. Chicken was
$1.39 and pork $.99.

David's Uncle Darrell was glad to receive visitors in SLC

Grandmas Letters Inspired Me

While visiting mother I read some of my grandmother Meacham's letters which she had faithfully kept all these years. It was very enjoyable. Since I don't write letters I thought this may be a good way to keep in touch and Ben is always getting after me for not blogging.

We just got back from an event filled 2 weeks. We took Craig to Great basin national park and explored the Lehman caves in Nevada. We next went to Utah and stayed a bit with Liz and Ryan and then to Draper to get ready for Marae and Ryan's wedding and luncheon for close friends and relatives. After the lovely wedding and luncheon athey left to catch a plane to spend their honeymoon in New Hampshire in the exra home of grandparents from Maine. They are staying with Ben's grandfather in Highland, Utah for a couple weeks before they go to London for Ben's master program in Mid Eastern studies I believe.
Friday, we had a picnic at Ryan and Liz's moms in Benjamin, utah. The children had a great time in their yard with water slides, baseball, toys, sand box, horses, etc. We do appreciate her kindness in letting us enjoy it. Jaxson asked when we were going to Davey's grandmother's again. We then hurried up to the mountains for a hike to a waterfall and pool the children played in. The weather was perfect. Then to Liz and Ryans for supper. It was delicious.

Saturday we went to Lagoon to spend the whole day together. It was fun to run into my Cousin Joyce and Thale Ostler and visit with them a bit. Also we got to spend time with Tommy our newest 1 month old baby grandson.

Church was attended in Draper and Monday after helping Liz learn how to can green beans and Chicken and meat we headed for Zions National Park to camp. It was lovely and peaceful. Then on to Micheline and Brets for the weekend. We got to attend Lindseys baptism and then went to the lake to meet her cousins family and Barben grandparents who had attended her cousins baptism in Cedar City athe same day. After church Sunday we went to grandmother Meachams and were able to get her computer set up that her hometeacher had so graciously given her. After supper I went through her genealogy and enjoyed that. Monday we met Ben for lunch at Sizzlers to use up the coupons Liz gave her dad. We enjoyed seeing him before we took Craig to BYU Idaho. We were happy to meet his nice roomates.

The Genealogy Club Was Formed

At the suggestion of Isabella Favero we started a genealogy club. Grandma thought it a splendid idea. The first meeting was at the Favero's house in Carson City. Grandmother decided that we would feature a different person each year to do research on.

Since her great Grandfather George Bellu Meacham lived in Reno, Nevada at one time we decided to feature him through August of 2009. Aunt Billie and Uncle Gordon Meacham had mentioned that he drove a 20 Mule Team for the Borax company. While in Reno for Grandpa's heart surgery Grandma took a couple of hours to go to the library to find more info. She found that usually single young men drove the large team of mules for tne arduous journey. The mule train was only with Borax between 1883-1889 until the growth of the railroad and new deposits were found. George Bellu would have been a young man at the time and the muleskinners were characteristically single men. They were solitary men used to enduring extreme hardships. During this time not a single wagon broke down nor a single animal was lost. For their efforts, muleskinners earned from $100 to $120 per month - very high wages for the time. The borax load had to be hauled 165 miles up and out of Death Valley, over the steep Panamint Mountains and across the desert to the nearest railroad junction at Mojave. The 20-day round trip started 190 feet below sea level and climbed to an elevation of 2000 feet before it was over. The heat, desolation and rattlesnakes presented ominous obstacles for both man and mule and occasionally the brakes gave way down a steep mountain grad and the heavy rig would thunder down the trail hard on the heels of the frantic mules. Special training for the mules was important. They each had their own jobs and the "sixes" and "eights" -were the pairs trained to leap over the chain when the mule train turned a corner. It was an omnious job to go around a curve and not being able to see if someone was coming up the other side.
After the use of the 20 Mule team was passed for hauling borax the teams appeared at special events ranging from St.Louis World's Fair in 1904 to President Woodrow Wilson's inauguration in 1916.
Borax is made partly from volcanic ash. Other uses for borax includeglass, detergents, for automobiles, cosmetics and medicines, building materials, flame retardants, agriculture,etc. We would be amazed at all the various uses. Uncle Jon
said that it is the salmon eggs for fishing.
At our second genealogy meeting at Grandma and Grandpa Lindsey's we made GAK from Borax. It is fun to play with and easy to make.
Mix 2 cups regular Elmer's glue or similar type
1 1/2 cups water (or until not sticky
Mix 1/3 cups water
1 T. borax
Add to glue mixture - color with food coloring if desired.

We also practiced adding names to the computer program PAF personal ancestral file which can be downloaded for free from the LDS.org family search site. They were able to give the names and dates and places for themselves and younger family members to link them to the family.
We made genealogy buttons or pins as designed by Bret Barben the younger. Each meeting will feature a new design by a new designer.

George Bellu Meacham is buried in Bishop, California. If anyone wants to visit his grave there is a directory in the cemetery to helpfind his grave. George Meacham, Grandma's father was named after his grandfather George Bellu Meacham. If anyone has a photo of George Bellu it would be greatly appreciated as we have not yet seen one.