Ferguson Family Christmas Eve Party

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Heather's Mission Call

Hi, everyone!

Just to let you all know that Heather has received her mission call. She will be going to the New York New York South mission (which is the bottom part of Manhattan and all of Long Island). She goes into the Missionary Training Center on January 28th. We are all thrilled and happy for her!

America at the Crossroads

I haven't posted a rant for awhile, but I think it's time. I'm sure that I don't have to tell you that things are a little scary right now (uh... guess I did it anyway... lol). I am firmly of the belief that the biggest problem we face is apathy. The people don't seem to care; at least, they don't seem willing to pick up the shovel and go to work to do anything about it. We have the poorest set of candidates for president that I can remember, and yet their supporters are praising them as the great champions of change. Frankly, I think that both of them have so much political baggage that little if anything will change. I've been interested to see that many others seem to have the same concerns I do. Take a look at the video on http://www.catholicvote.com. It's very representative of what's out there.

Please encourage everyone you know to vote. I don't think it's necessary to tell anyone who to vote for; it would be enough if we could get more than 40% of our people to the polls and really have a majority select the next president, and not just the same old party hacks wielding the power.

If we the people don't do something really soon, I'm very afraid we are going to lose our country. So please, pass this on. God bless America.

Talk Like a Pirate Day

A couple of weeks ago it was Talk Like a Pirate Day... so our work crew got into the spirit. Arrrrrr!!!!

Oh Dear!!

Okay Willy I need your help in moving all this gibberish to another page so it doesn't take up so much room. I got it back on but w/o pictures I'm still working on it. Love, Lizee

Christmas 2007

"Christmas Makes You Feel Emotional" gung hay fat choi!
Life has blessed me and challenged me as it should. I have so very much to be thankful for; my children, grandchildren, family(siblings), friends and my two kitties-Sigmund and Sissy. This year I lost two of my sweet feline friends to the cat food contamination. My sweet Sydney and Stella. It was so sad and they left me so very quickly. The two feline/kitties I lost were both rescues and very feral.
It took over a year for Stella (momma kitty) to finally trust me and want to be near me. Syd on the other had was just a baby and he warmed up rapidly. I guess he told his mom that I could be trusted and not to be afraid. I adopted the two after my sweet little Chloe passed over the Rainbow Bridge about five years ago. How I miss that little girl. She was a Miniature(really a toy) Schnauzer and was the sweetest dog in the whole world. She died three years after my near fatal auto accident; which marked its 10th year this year. It's hard to believe a decade has passed although I know how much work I have put into trying to get back to my old self. It will never happen and I have resigned myself to that fact. I keep thinking "what do I really want to do when I grow up?" and then I tell myself "you have and now you are old", too funny! I enjoyed teaching for as long as I was able to teach but I don't believe it is something that I can do full-time any longer. I enjoy subbing in the school district I'm in but it is very hard work; at least for me. I know I will find where I'm suppose to be if I remain patient and willing.
Oh where was I, yes Christmas. Jolene and Naomi made Christmas a lovely time for me this year as did Jeff, Cindy and their family. Jolene is so much like my mother and reminds me alot of her in the special touches she gives to her home and other holidays. She writes beautiful poetry, but hasn't for a very long time. She is so creative and loving. She has done a wonderful job as a parent and has raised a beautiful, intelligent young lady that excels in everything she puts her mind too. Jeff is a great dad and loves his family as he has grown up doing. He and Cindy have three strong-willed children who are all different in their own way. His son always has "sugar" for grandma. In case you don't know what that means it is hugs and kisses for me. Jeff's two girls are lively and lovely. One is artistic and one (the almost Christmas baby) is sweet and caring AND a lefty like Jolene. All my grandchildren give me such joy and appreciation. I am so grateful for them. I hope the coming year will bring peace and comfort for all those who need it and that the conflict in Iraq will end so our men and women can return home. I pray for peace and well-being for all my family, friends and citizens of the world. To you all Happy New Year 2008!
This Christmas was wonderful and meaningful!

From Naomi and Jolene: We love you Mom and Grandma!! It was so much fun playing games and going to Fantasy Lights! Happy New Year 2008!!!!!!!!

My Birthday Bash

It was so nice getting together last weekend at Harriet's. I can't tell you how much I appreciate everyone being there. I had a blast! When we were playing Guesstures I laughed so hard I had to leave the room! It was so cool seeing Jolene and Naomi, and Jeff and his kids. And Tim is a hoot! I am so full of things that I want to say that for some reason the words just won't come. I want you all to know that I love you and miss you. Thanks for celebrating my birthday with me. It means a great deal to me and I will remember this weekend for a long, long time.

There's FIRE down below....

We had some excitement around our place on Thursday! Carol had just gotten out of the shower when the doorbell rang. It was our next door neighbor who said, "Did you know our fence is on fire?" Well, needless to say, Carol rushed out onto the deck and, sure enough, it was!

The fire department came and put it out. Apparently it was two pre-adolescent boys playing with firecrackers. The house you can see in this picture from the newspaper is ours... and the empty panel in the vinyl fence is on our side of the fenceline. Sigh. If it isn't one thing, it's another.

And if you were wondering... no, that's not Carol in the picture. It's the neighbor and her niece.

Osmonds Pioneer Day Concert.

We went to the Conference Center Saturday, July 26th and watched the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Orchestra on Temple Square, and the Osmonds! It was a wonderful, wonderful evening, and the crowd was rowdy and TERRIFIC! And the Osmonds are wonderful!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Family Get-Together

You're all invited to the farm for a family get-together on Saturday, August 30. Bill and Carol will be up from Utah, and would like to see everyone (we can celebrate his birthday, too!).

Festivities will commence at 2:00 p.m.

Ideas I have are:

• BBQ dinner


• tractor rides


• Quincy museum visit


• lawn games


• family memory share - look through photos, too


• group photos

Any ideas you have would be appreciated.

Food: BBQ: (4:00) We'll supply the main dishes, breads, drinks, and everything to serve and eat on, but would like help with salads and desserts. Breakfast on Sunday: we'll supply.

Lodging for Saturday night: We have 2 bedrooms that can be used, each with double bed. Bill & Carol can stay in one, and perhaps Liz in the other? We also have a living room where people could sleeping bag-it, and have green lawn where people could tent. Otherwise, there's motels in town (which are often full and need to be reserved right away) or Wenatchee.

Please RSVP by August 20!

Wheat Harvest is On!

It's the time of year when we are harvesting wheat again on the family farm. David and Tim have just finished combining the dryland acreage, which took about a week. We were fortunate that we had no breakdowns this year. We had good winter moisture, but no rain to speak of for over 3 months, so the yields were down this year compared to the last few. We are grateful though for the better wheat price, even though it meant that the fertilizer and fuel prices have also doubled!

Every year Tooele has a 4th of July parade. They keep getting bigger, and so I thought I'd post this year's. It's actually not bad, for a small town trying to grow up.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Where is everyone?

No one has posted on here for weeks. ARe you all tired and bored with it? I had such high hopes.... sigh....

BURTON FAMILY REUNION

Hey!

There will be a Burton Family Reunion in Swan Valley, Idaho on June 21st! If you're interested, email me at billburton57@gmail.com and I'll send you a copy of the invitation!

Carol's Birthday

Hi, all.

Well, yesterday was Carol's XXth birthday. She wanted to go to Teppanyaki, which is a great place to eat; reasonable prices and LOTS of food, and of course because they cook everything at your table there is a show. I've included some pictures... hope you like 'em.

Oh, BTW... I finally found another job. I'm working for a government contractor out at Dugway. Harriet told me about Jeff being laid off... hope he finds something soon. I understand he went and played farmer for a couple of days with Harriet and David. Hope he can still walk....

Jared's NFL Films Summer Internship Pictures

Jared is in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey this summer doing an internship for NFL Films (well, actually he lives six miles away in Palmyra, NJ) and he took a day trip to Philadelphia, so I thought I'd share some of the pictures he took. Hope you enjoy them!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Memorial Day 2008

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

I also thought that why I was on here, I would take the time to tell my Family how much I love them and appreciate all that they have done for me! I know we have our trials and struggles, but Being a family is what has got us through those hard times. Without our hardships we would not be the family that we are today. And for the blessing of family, even the blessings of trials, I am truly grateful!

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

Swan Valley!

If I remember correctly... They have a Burton Family Reunion in Idaho in about June- ish?? Last year it was at Lagoon; Which was odd... But usually it's in Swan Valley. I think that we all need to get there this year! Mainly because we all haven't seen each other in a good 10 or more years! But also because of the simple fact that Dad and Jared are the only ones still with the last name Burton! I guess our Burton men are just good at producing women ;) So lets all save our money and make this happen! Hope everyone has a great day! :)

Another blast from the past...

Lizzie has been really good about posting pictures, so I'll give you guys this one. It was taken at Aunt Mary's in California about 1943. It's my three generation picture with Dad and Gandpa Burton. Hope you enjoy...

Our niece's family is growing...

Our niece Kiera (Carol's brother's daughter) and her husband Marc have just adopted little Noah. They have three kids of their own but wanted more, and so here he is. The whole Ferguson family is excited and happy, and I just wanted to share the news with my side of the family.

I'd love to have a Burton Family Reunion! Let's try to put it together!!!

Love to you all,
Bill, Carol and our gang

Let's Get Bloggin!!!!

Hey Burton Clan:
Bill has setup a wonderful place to share and there are only a couple of us (more than 4) blogging!!! We are all busy but that is no excuse. Come on now and share, share, share! I want to know if there are any Burton Family reunions in the near future? If not let's create one...

Love,
Lizee

Liz isn't the only one who's 60+

I was reading Lizzee's post about being 61 and I couldn't help but think about the fact that I'm 5 years older than my "little" sister. Thinking back about when she was born, I remember that we were living in Vallejo, California, in some old Navy quarters. Because I was 5, I didn't pay a lot of attention to the new arrival, I was too busy with my own really cool things, mostly going to kindergarten and learning to read. My teacher realized that I was ready, and let me stay in from recess (I didn't like it much anyway) and practice my reading. We had moved down from Boise, Idaho and it was so much nicer in California; almost no SNOW! You could play outside most of the year, and I remember that I did. I wasn't really aware that there were babies in the family until Edward came along two years later. We had moved onto the base at Hamilton Field and with two younger siblings, they were more obvious; especially when Ed started to try to walk and used Betsy's (that's what we called her then) doll buggy as a crutch. Betsy didn't like it, and would push him down. He'd wail, Mom would come running, and there would be commotion for a little while. I was taking accordion lessons and trying to practice and it all just added to the noise level.
So don't feel bad, Liz... it isn't too tough. I'm a lot closer to 70 than you are, and I don't HAVE any grandkids to spoil. Dang it. Well, I can hope.