As GRAND As It Gets!!!! :)

Hi Y'all,

Just checking in...how are YOU???? I hope you're all enjoying your summer even HALF as much as I'm enjoying mine so far....oh my gosh, this is the BEST trip EVER!!!!

I'm having a GREAT time here! I leave for Oregon tomrorrow, and I'm TOTALLY excited about that!!!

This past week has been one of the best, most relaxing, enjoyable, lovely, humbling and BEAUITFUL weeks of my life! EVERYONE has come out and taken time out for me and that just means the WORLD to me, I'm one very loved, blessed young lady!

I even FEEL BETTER here! I've only had heartburn TWICE this whole 8 days and while I do have a small absess on my neck, I have energy and I feel GREAT! The stress of Vegas must be a lot b/c I really am feeling better healthwise than I have in AGES!!! Thank GOD!

My grama lives in the country in a small town of about 2,500 poeple and while it's rather boring at times, I've decided that boredom can be good! I've taken LOTS of pictures and even written about four poems so far....and this is just week ONE of my FOUR week journey! God is GRAND!!!!

I'm REALLY pumped to see my sisters, dad, and stepmom...... and also my friend, Betty, up in Redding, CA. I'm stopping there tomrorow night to spend the night, so I'll only have to make TWO 5 or 6 hour trips instead of ONE 14 hour one! The drive HERE from Vegas, oh, crazy LONG! Not looking foward to doing that again, but I will!!!! At least God got me here safely, in one piece! :)

I think the highlight of my trip, so far, has been hanging out with ALL of my family and friends......

My former teacher, Mark Towell and his family, oh, what an absolutely ADORABLE baby they have! Such a thrill to see!

Tessa, my friend from HS and Karen, my other friend from HS, oh, my, how we ALL have grown up! We're ALL 21 now and while we didn't go drinkin' and carousin', we did have a GREAT time! Karen and I went shoppin' at Wal-Mart (hey, I DO know how to save) and had lunch and Tess and I went to the DELICIOUS local Farmer's Market! Yum! We also went to see my former house, out in Spanish Springs where I spent my years of 4-11...it's up for sale, for a whopping $310,000, my parents bought it back in 1988 for $97,000....whew...STILL tryin' to digest that one!!!! It's so BIG out there now, shopping centers where I used to play in fields, my old elementary school has trailors and a new playground....amazing....ANYHOW.....

It's SO nice to catch up and see people in PERSON!!!, I'm a total phone/email person, but sometimes, there's NOTHING like a real face in front of your face and a HUG! Can't be beat! :)

And Annette, my former therapist, she looks great, we had a lovely lunch and conversation and she even gave me information on where to get some of my poetry published and how to go about it! My Uncle Bob & Aunt Rosemary, they came down for dinner last week and that was wonderful!

THANK YOU to ALL of those who took time out for me, what a joy, what a thrill, what an honor, I SO appreciate it! THANKS!!!!

And spending time with my grama, cooking, baking, sewing, talking, gardening....NEVER a day where we both don't learn something!!!!....... and seeing her SO happy and in love w/ her great husband. You know, at ANY age that's a rare and wonderful thing, but in your 70s, that's just downright AWESOME!!! They are SO cute and so sweet and they give me HOPE for my own love life later on!

The FOOD here is OUT of the this WORLD! EVERYTHING is FRESH and from SCRATCH...oh, I'm SURE I've put on SOME weight! LOL! Thanks Grama! :)

I do miss my mom and Hugh, but I'm doing okay without them. I REALLY miss my cat, aparently, she's moping around the house and will NOT sleep with my mom while I'm gone...she's doing funny stuff, and when I call home I can her her meowing her little head off, which is so nice!

I'm really discovering a lot about myself and having an amazing time.....

The country side is beautiful, seeing my hometown is great and appreciating where I grew up all over again and the amazing people who continue to show their love, support and loyalty-it doesn't get any better than this folks!

Many Blessings,
-SL