The Polar Express

This year, after a few struggles to get there, we made it to the Heber Valley RailRoad's Polar Express Ride. The kids were so excited. I believe this was all of the kids' first train ride. They had a ball the whole time. Me, not so much. I mean, I guess I may have been expecting too much from this activity. Polar express makes me think there'll be people singing as they serve Hot Cocoa, and professional type actors or something. I don't know what the other cars were like, but ours seemed quite a bit unprofessional. Like, I said. I had expectations that were way too high for this trip. It's all good though. What the kids thought of it was what matters most.



We were served Hot Chocolate and Homemade Cookies. They were like chocolate chip cookies but with a bit of a Gingersnap taste to them. They even gave us the recipe for the cookies, so I'm going to try them soon. We did have a couple of elves that were telling jokes and trying to sing. ;) There was also someone dressed as a chef who actually had a great voice. The elves were close to tone deaf, but oh well. We had a short visit from Mrs. Claus. She's the one who gave us the cookie recipe.



Then later, we stopped when a visitor flagged down the train. Guess Who?!?...




Overall, I probably wouldn't pay that much money to do the same activity again, but it was a great experience for the family. My goal has been to do things that would create lasting memories. Whether or not I thought it was a "perfect" Polar Express, it was a Memory we will have forever.

Neiko is Lost!

While we were gone visiting family on Thanksgiving Day, someone let our dogs out of the Back Yard. Butch came back, like he always does, but we have still seen no sign of Neiko. I have posted a listing for our lost dog on KSL and I know that as of this morning, the Animal Shelter does not have her. My guess is that someone found her and took her in. We had not gotten her licensed yet, so that's our bad. I feel awful!
My kids are working on posters to put up around the neighborhood and they have been out looking every day for her. I told them she was probably in someone's house and that she was probably warm and safe. Alex said that's all he is concerned about, though he does want her back. If anyone happens to see her anywhere, please let me know ASAP!
If and when we do find her, we will make sure to get her licensed and taken care of first thing. We miss her so much even though she is a pretty new addition to our household. She's such a cutie and would probably be very cold is she were still outside.
Here's to doing everything we can to find her and bring her back to our family!

The Countdown begins!

Well, actually, I have two countdowns...
The first one is the Countdown to Christmas. Now that it is the day after Thanksgiving, we have entered the official countdown to Christmas. I LOVE Christmas! The sounds, the smells, the lights, and the good spirit that people possess. If only the world could enjoy the Christmas Spirit throughout the entire year! I get to decorate my house, make Christmas gifts and treats, and remember those who are less fortunate than we are at this tough time. We have struggled, but I know there are MANY many people who are in much worse circumstances than we are. We have a home. We have food. We have family. And we have a few gifts to give to the children. For these things and Many others, I am absolutely Grateful!
We are going to the Food and Care Coalition to serve others and we are donating items of food and toys like we usually do. We have already sub-for-santa'd a family a couple of weeks ago with items we were lucky enough to have, and fortunate enough to be able to offer to someone who could truly use them. I still feel as though there is more for us to do this Holiday season, so we will keep our eyes and Hearts open to those who could benefit from our family in any way. I have been assisted much through times of trial and I do everything I can to pay it forward. I pray that everyone can do the same!
The Second countdown that is soon coming to an end is this First Semester back to college. I only have a couple more weeks of school and only that amount of time to work on finishing up all the papers, studying, and testing I must complete for class. Then we'll see how my Grades turn out and go from there into next semester. I already know that I am going to take Math 1010 over again because the Math took me by surprise in regards to what I couldn't remember. Almost Everything! That's OK though. I'll be more prepared for next time.
So off I go to write my Nutrition 1020 Research Paper and study for the test I am taking on Monday. Wish me luck...or at least Happy studying. :)
Happy Black Friday to you all!

Let's get creeps off our streets!

So I know most of you who actually read my blog already know what happened to my Uncle Lynn and are with us in doing what we can to get his murderer off of the streets. But just in case there's even one person who comes to my blog who doesn't know, and is willing to join our cause, I'll post information again. Here's the contents of an email I sent to some friends and family members. Let me know if you have any questions or are willing to join the fight!...


Hi Everybody!

I am writing with a plea for help. As many of you know, my Uncle Lynn Patterson recently passed away after sustaining injuries in a hit-and-run accident with a drunk driver last month. As of right now, the man who is responsible has only served 5 hours in jail and is working on a plea deal that could give him a mere 9 month sentence in jail after he not only rear ended my Uncles car, but then ran him over before fleeing the scene, causing his death. Many friends and family are writing letters to the Mayor, the attorney general, and anyone else that might be able to make this repeat offender serve his full sentence.

If any of you (and anyone else you know) wouldn't mind joining me in writing the officials, I will give you contact info and even a copy of the letter I am sending to them. You can just copy this letter, or write your own. I think that what has happened is absolutely ridiculous, and any assistance our family can get to accomplish justice would be hugely appreciated!


Here's a link to the one and ONLY news report about the accident:

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=8432975&nid=148

Here's my version of the letter I am sending to officials:

"Dear ,

I am writing to you as a very concerned citizen who is deeply disappointed in how justice is not being served in regards to the hit-and-run death of Milton Lynn Patterson.

Lynn Patterson, was tragically murdered by a repeat offender (DUI), Ron Torres, in West Valley City late on the night of October 23, 2009. After having part of his skull removed and remaining unconscious in the ICU, he passed away on October 30. He was only 58 years old. He is the father and step-father to 12 children. His youngest child is barely 14. She keeps hoping she'll wake up and these events will have all been a bad dream.

I say "murdered" because after rear-ending Lynn at a red light on Bangerter Highway, Torres ran him down with his car when Lynn got out to assess the vehicle’s damage. There were witnesses to the accident, including a Deputy. Torres’ defense is that he was scared because he was driving on a denied license with prior offenses. How does he think Lynn's family has felt?!

I heard that Torres' attorney is working on a plea deal. This should not be allowed to happen. As of May 12, 2009, the new hit-and-run law on the Utah books (H.B. 237), sponsored by Rep. Chris Herrod, states that motorists involved in a hit-and-run collision in which there is death or serious bodily injury can be charged with a felony if they previously were convicted of DUI. Torres has been previously convicted of 2 DUIs, and on October 23; fled the scene, falsely called in his vehicle as stolen, and even disabled the court mandated breathalyzer interlock system in his car. Letting him plea and get off with a slap on the wrist would be an enormous perversion of justice, and the biggest disrespect to his Wife--who now must make ends meet on her own. She has severe type 1 diabetes and is a kidney transplant survivor. Lynn took amazing care of his wife and his family, along with every person he ever met. This injustice would also extend to the children who have been robbed of their father, to the grandchildren who have been robbed of their grandfather, to the extended family who have been robbed of their Patriarch, and to the community who has been robbed of a true Angel among men.

Lynn Patterson was a hard-working, honest man. He was a man who delighted in serving others and did so at every opportunity. He was a man who proudly served his country in the U.S Navy protecting our freedoms. He was a man who did not deserve to be run down like a dog and left to die on the side of the road just because another man made completely irresponsible, and might I add criminal, choices.

Please do all that you can to see that Ron Torres is made to take full responsibility for the hundreds and hundreds of people he has affected with his careless and reprehensible behavior (Lynn Patterson had an extremely large heart, and an even larger circle of family and friends).

In light of the seemingly ever increasing number of hit-and-run crimes, I sincerely hope that you, and all of our elected officials, will do whatever you can to see that laws are put in place and upheld to protect the citizens of this state and not the offenders. Hit-and-run crimes need to be a felony, period! We need to join the rest of the country (except Montana and Kentucky) in ALWAYS classifying these serious crimes as felonious--not just when a previous DUI is involved.

Thank you very much for your time."


Here is contact information for the people I am sending this letter to:

West Valley City Mayor and City Manager

Mayor Dennis J. Nordfelt
Wayne Pyle,City Manager
3600 S. Constitution Blvd.
West Valley City, UT 84119
Ph: (801) 963-3220
Fax: (801) 966-8455

http://www.wvc-ut.gov/index.aspx?nid=98
You can also go to this webpage and fill out an online statement to the mayor


West Jordan Mayor

Mayor David B. Newton
City of West Jordan
8000 S. Redwood Rd.
West Jordan, UT 84088

City phone: (801) 569-5105
Cell phone: (801) 381-8111
Home phone: (801) 255-5415
e-mail: daven@wjordan.com

Attorney General Mark Shurtleff

Questions, Complaints, Requests, or Suggestions
General Office Numbers: (801) 366-0260, (801) 538-9600, (801) 366-0300
Toll Free within the State of Utah: (800) AG4 INFO (244-4636)
E-Mail: uag@utah.gov
Please leave your name, phone number or address so you can be contacted.


Utah State Capitol Office
Office of the Attorney General
Utah State Capitol Complex
350 North State Street Suite 230
SLC UT 84114-2320
FAX: (801) 538-1121

Utah State Capitol Office Mailing Address
Office of the Attorney General
PO Box 142320
SLC UT 84114-2320


Heber M. Wells Building Offices
P.O. Box 140811
Salt Lake City, UT 84114
FAX: (801) 366-0221


I am also seeking out who the judge is in this case so that I may write to him or her as well.

You can check out more pictures and information on Facebook in the group "In Memory of Lynn Patterson we should have stricter laws for DUI "


Thanks to anyone who wants to help with this cause. Bless you all and I will let you know (if you want) what happens as this process comes along.

Bad Blogger, Bad Blogger!

As if I really have any time to be blogging, I still feel bad that I haven't updated for a while. Lots has happened, though, so let me share...

The first major thing that happened over the last few months was that my Grandmother passed away. She's the one that we have lived with in the past. And of course, turmoil ensued over STUFF. But I'll not go into that, because it's not really that important. Grandma Watters passed away on October 8, 2009 and we had her funeral on October 12. I, along with one of my cousins from each of the Sisters' families spoke at the funeral. It was great, but sorta long. Lots to remember. All I know is Grandma is back with Grandpa and they are both happy and out of pain and their imperfect mortal bodies.
Shortly after Grandma passed away, Matt got the devastating news that because of his history, he is currently unable to become enlisted in any Military service. They did leave a thread of hope and tell him that things change and it's possible that at some point in the future, the rules may change, but I'm not holding my breath. I sorta feel like the ROTC program keep stringing him along in order for him to stay enrolled, but I could be wrong. In regards to the rest on Matt's classes this semester, it's gonna be a wash. We've already got him signed up for the same classes next semester, but at night.
The next major event was my Uncle Lynn Patterson being rear-ended by a drunk driver, and then when he got out of the car to assess the damage, the guy ran him over and took off. That night, Uncle Lynn had to have part of his skull removed to relieve swelling and he lay unconscious in the hospital for a week. At that point, the Doctors determined that he wasn't going to get any better and so the family decided to take him off of life support. He passed away around 7pm on October 30, 2009. We attended an amazing funeral the following Tuesday, November 3rd. My Aunt Donetta was doing extremely well in my opinion. I'd be a basket case, I know it. I can't imaging losing my Mom and a couple of weeks later, losing my husband. All I can say is Families can be Together Forever!..and they will be!
We have had other smaller events, like extended family member contracting H1N1, and us luckily, not getting it. Though, I am not sure that we don't have it in our house right now. We'll see.
Matt just started a job with a masonry company, so we have a paycheck coming in , Finally! The position is for the next 4-6 weeks, but could become permanent. He is earning prevailing wages, so it's good pay. We just have to get him to and from Pleasant Grove everyday to meet his boss for a ride to the job site.
Our other stroke of good luck is that our car has broken down. SO that means, we're having to find rides for Matt to get to work, me to get to school, and anywhere else we have to go. Fun, fun for Mama.
That's pretty much a breakdown of the major happenings over the last few months. I have to go chase down my little boys and clean up whatever mess I am sure they are making. Talk to everyone very soon!...I hope!