Thursday evening , February 20, 2014 Vernon and Connie and their children arrived from Arkansas for a visit.
I enjoyed so much the visit of ten of my grandchildren.
Rebecca and Rachel have changed a lot since I last saw them.
We had a good visit.
Fred and Rauna and family came over to visit them.
The cousins enjoyed visiting together.
It is nice to have so many family members in my home.
I had dinner ready for all of them.
Joseph and Benjamin show me the quilt their mother made for them..
Bethany took a baby blanket that she loved that I made for her and made a big quilt out of it.
Later in the evening Mark and Marlene and their family came to visit.
They enjoyed getting to see more of their cousins.
We had another good visit. I made oatmeal raisin cookies to serve everyone.
I am happy that the cousins enjoy being together.
It has been a long time since Vernon and Connie came to visit me.
To end the day we had scripture study and prayer of thanksgiving for their safe arrival.
I made whole wheat waffles for breakfast on Friday morning.
I took Vernon over to ASU to present his research paper. When I came back the children were all reading.
I am happy that my grandchildren love to read.
Bethany played a piece on the piano for me.
We took the children to some of the places where their fat her lived as a child.
We started out trip with a stop at Thrifty Ice Cream.
It was a special treat when our family would go there after a concert or tithing settlement.
Our next stop was Grandpa's Dental Office.
We had this office especially built for us close to our home.
The children would come and help their Dad at the dental office after school.
This is the back door where we parked. The dentist that we sold our dental practice to has moved to another location.
This is the home where Vernon lived until he was about sis years old.
This is the Stake Center where we went to Church. We were there for the groundbreaking when the building was started. We bought the shovel of our favorite Bishop to help with the fund raising.
I showed my grandchildren where we went to church.
This is the home that we moved to and where Vernon lived the rest of his time in our home.
I enjoyed showing the children where their Dad grew up.
Broadmor School where our children attended elementary school has since been torn down and a new school constructed on the same lot.
McKemy Jr. High is now the Tempe Academy of International Studies.
The McKemy auditorium is still named for Joe Spracale.
We also drove by Tempe High School.
We showed the children Gammage Auditorium at A.S.U.
This is the Wells Fargo Arena on the A.S.U. Campus.
The Sun Devil Football Stadium.
This Mosque is a smaller version of "The Dome of the Rock" in Jerusalem.
We stopped and took pictures here.
Tempe City Hall is in the background.
It is made like an upside down pyramid.
Connie used to work at Krazy Subs in Mesa
This has lots of memories for Connie.
We ate lunch there.
The submarine sandwiches were good.
Connie talked on this phone when Grandmother Flake asked her if she would go out with her grandson. So many memories!
We went to the airport to pick up Alison and her baby Abigail who came down to visit.
Abigail is so cute. She is just starting to crawl.
Alison came to visit her mother for her birthday.
Abigail is Connie's first grandbaby.
They decorated these Christmas plates at Christmas time and just got them back.
I got the legos out for the children to play.
Mason enjoyed building towers.
This is a tall tower.
I enjoyed getting acquainted with my great grand baby.
She is a healthy happy baby.
Connie bought notebooks for her children to keep a journal of their trip.
They talked about some of the things to include in their journals.
Vernon and Connie provide learning opportunities for their children.
The boys enjoy the bean bag toss game.
Vernon said that he had a productive day at ASU showing them some of his research and the books he has written.
I enjoyed seeing my son be a grandpa and enjoying his grandbaby.
Alison brought a fun game for the children to play.
Brian's family came from California to take him home with them. He's been living with Vernon and Connie and family for the past four months.
We invited them to stay for dinner. I had 19 people here for dinner. I am happy that I had Lasagna made ahead.
The families enjoyed getting acquainted.
Brian and his Mom and Dad and two brothers.
Ray came for dinner and enjoyed visiting with everyone. Mason likes his Uncle Ray.
Three generations!
We put candles on the birthday cake that I made for Connie.
Vernon lit the birthday candles.
We all sang Happy Birthday to Connie.
Connie blew out all the birthday candles so she gets her wish.
Mason wanted to blow out the birthday candles too.
Rebecca is celebrating her birthday in about a week so we put birthday candles on for her too.
She blew out all 16 candles.
Mason and Brian are buddies. Masonn will miss Brian.
One more picture with Brian before he leaves to go back to California.
And a group hug.
I am happy that Ray came over to spent the evening with us.
