Fred the Cactus is gone

We were sad that our very large Saguaro cactus got a disease and was dying.  He was so tall and if he fell it would be very dangerous so we had him taken down.  We named him Fred when we first moved here and the name stuck.

We researched what we could do to try to save him, and tried using the bleach and water solution that was recommended.  It worked for a while, but then it just got worse and worse.  Those gray spots kept getting bigger and bigger.  After it was removed, the guy who took it down said that it was rotting inside.  

Cutting Fred down

If you look at the end of the video, you'll see our neighbors were outside watching the process.

Bye, Fred!  We miss you already!

The first day of school--again!

 The kids are going back to school in person!  Yay!  These pictures are basically the same as before, except that their smiles are bigger and they are dressed a little nicer.

Emily, Senior

Andrew, freshman

Emily drives them to school at 6:10am for zero hour

Daniel, 8th grade

Jonathan, 6th grade

Jonathan takes the bus and Daniel walks to school

They are so glad to be done with online classes and they had a great first day back!

Visit with Shannon and Jay and family

Michael's sister, Shannon, and her family visited this weekend.  On Saturday, we met them for lunch.  On Sunday, they all came to our house, along with Erin, Carol, and Steve.  It was nice to have his whole side of the family together.  Shannon and Jay and their girls Chloe and Julia, live in Kenya, but they also have a new home in Utah where they have been staying during Covid.  They drove down here and did some sightseeing on the way here and on the way back.  Our kids had a great time playing with their cousins!  We also had a fun time playing 5 Second Rule together.

The whole family, except for Nathaniel

Playing Jenga

It was great to see everyone!