2nd Annual Grassroots
Music Blend
Come enjoy live music and good company in the summer night air
Sat Aug 6th @ 7pm
Askerlund backyard (5442 Rose Willow Cir.)
(additional seating will be available in the adjacent yard if needed, the balcony seats!)
Bring a Blanket to sit on and a snack to share.
No kids please
RSVP amyask1@yahoo.com or via facebook
Bring your neighbors and friends!
We went down to St. George with Jon’s parents for a weekend. We spent the first day at Sand Hollow. I just love it here!
The sand is so smooth and soft and the water is so blue and warm. It is always so fun to pack a picnic and spend the day.
This time, I ended up in the Instacare with a broken nose! I was on the tube with Paige and her head hit my nose. Ouch!
This is the day it happened, Saturday, a little swollen.
Here’s the X-ray, you can see the 2 breaks.
Sunday morning:
Sunday night:
Monday:
Tuesday:
It’s getting better everyday! The swelling is down and the bruising is getting lighter and smaller everyday.
Here are some more pictures from a walk we took in Hurricane:
Every time we go it’s so fun and relaxing. The warm weather and change of environment makes it feel like a great vacation. We feel so blessed to be able to spend time there. (And we love to go with friends, too! 
)
There is really only one place in the world I want to be on the 4th of July. Anyone who’s been will usually echo my sentiment. IDAHO FALLS!!!
Here we are having a game of backyard baseball.
And enjoying some fireworks in the street.
Wrestling in the grass with Uncle Ben and Grandpa:
The morning of the 4th, some of us ran a 5K. Paige and Haily wanted to try it. I was very proud of them for finishing!
Then we went to a flag raising ceremony that the neighbors have hosted for many years.
Then it was off to the parade!
We had a fun BBQ that afternoon, took a nice nap, and headed out to the BIG firework show by the falls.
The next day was my birthday! I started the day by going to breakfast with 4 of my BFFs from high school and our husbands. It was so good to see everyone!
The next day I went out to gelato and a movie with some friends here at home.
Jon got me a fabulous present! This:
It’s a Nook Color! I’m still learning all it can do but so far my favorite is the scripture app and all the games…oh and the magazines!
This is definitely my favorite time of the year!
When I was pregnant with Haily, I was super sick! The sickest I’ve ever been. I tried and tried but could not hold anything down, and ended up having an IV put in for 2 months.
So, early in this pregnancy, I spent a lot of “down” time; thinking, pondering, resting. I think I got to know this little babe before she was born, more so than with any other child. I knew from the beginning she was SWEET.
Here she is just over a year old.
And here she is 4.
Last month, Haily turned 8!
She had a fun party with her friends! She just wanted to play Dance on the Xbox Kinect. They had fun!
Then a couple weeks later, she was baptized! Jon and I took her out to the dinner of her choice and she chose, the Mayan! Then we went to the mall to buy her some new shoes; and she chose:
Here she is on her special day:
We were blessed that so many friends and family could be there with us. What a sweet, beautiful, special day.
Ah, the end of the school year. It seems every week there is a project due! Here are a couple we did recently:
Haily did a Great Brain Report where she could research and present a report on any topic she chose. Lots of kids in her class did things like Little Pet Shops, Koala Bears, and so on. Haily chose to do hers on volcanoes! She read a book about them, and we did some research online. Here is the model we built:
We practiced the eruption the night before about 4 times. It worked every time. When we did it for the class, it did not work! So sad! So the next day I went in and did it again. This time it worked!
Paige’s grade did a zoo where they each and to research an animal and make replica to display in the zoo. She chose the elephant. Here is the one we built:
It was her idea to use the milk carton and to use raw spaghetti for the grassland habitat.
Some more of Charlie playing soccer:
My little girl is growing up!
And for Mother’s Day:
I ordered myself some new running shoes! After the hundreds of miles put on the old pair, I thought it was about time. But the best gifts are the hand made ones from the kids. Haily did a magazine at school where she answered questions about me. If she could give me anything it would be “ 1,000,000,000 dolers”, my favorite restaurant is “McDonalds”, and my favorite TV show is “Opra Wimfree”!
Thursday, April 14th, 2011 Jon’s grandma passed away. She was one of the greatest people I’ve ever known. I wish I could claim that she was on MY side of the family! She did make me feel just like one of her own. She truly had the ability to LOVE. She made everyone feel so welcome and special. She will be sorely missed.
We had the opportunity to visit her somewhat often over the past year or so. Here are some of the photos we took with her.
February 2010:
May 2010
September 2010
This is a picture of a statue that she loved and was printed on the back of the funeral programs:
Here we are after the funeral:
It was a beautiful Spring day and the service was lovely. Lots of happy memories were shared. The girls and I wrote a poem.
In Memory of Jean
A poem for the poet,
With eyes of brilliant blue,
Gentle hands and auburn hair,
A heart so kind and true.
Little Mary Leona,
Her Daddy called her Jean,
And paid her brothers to do the same,
To her mother’s eyes unseen.
Secret money giving,
She learned it while so small,
She’d tuck some in your pocket,
Before you knew at all.
Love at first sight struck young Jean,
They’d dance the nights away,
Then run away to marry,
His name was Norris Kay.
Never forgot a birthday,
Or special occasion missed,
Each child lit up her face,
As their tender cheeks she kissed.
Around her table they’d gather,
Played Go Fish or Slap a Jack,
Out at the pomegranate tree,
They’d gather some in a sack.
We loved her potato salad,
Only she could make it right,
We also loved her happy smile,
It was so big and bright.
She always loved the movies,
To the theater she’d go,
Or stay home with warm milk,
And settle in for a show.
So much fun to be with,
Always made a clever joke,
She’d drop her head and laugh,
Then sip her mug of coke.
Caught between two worlds,
As her time was drawing nigh.
So many here would miss her,
When they had to say goodbye.
The children and the grandkids,
A loving husband most.
Who would eat the nightly mush,
And perfect piece of toast?
“Who will love me like she did?”
She had the magic gift.
Each felt like her favorite.
Her words, their spirits lift.
The duty left to each of us,
She showed us what to do.
She learned from the Master,
Love as I loved you.
Encircled in His loving arms,
Health and beauty hers again,
With daughter, parents, countless more,
Welcomed home by waiting kin.
Now she watches over us,
Sending signs of love,
A hummingbird in Springtime,
A pair of mourning doves.
By Amy, Paige, and Haily Askerlund
These doves came and perched in the tree of her front yard after the funeral. We thought it was a tender moment and looked into the symbolism of these birds:
..."DOVE - reminds us how important peace is. The peace symbolized by Dove is that of the deepest kind. It quiets our worried and troubled thoughts, and allows us to find renewal in the silence of mind. In such moments of stillness we are able to appreciate simple blessings. It reminds us that no matter what is happening in our lives, there are always new possibilities open to us..."
The dove is a universal symbol of peace and innocence. In ancient Greek myth it was a bird of Athene which represented the renewal of life.
