Life @ The McCrary's

Friday, September 5

The Art of Cutting Up

I have successfully been able to keep scissors away from Ella and today she finally found them. She knew what they were for and quickly taught herself how to use them. Upon seeing Mom she proudly exclaimed that she was "Tutting da papaw." We had the immediate discussion that scissors are for paper only and not for hair. She agreed and I gave her a couple quick pointers for easier handling and simply asked that she please pick up every piece of paper when she was done. She gladly agreed and off she went. This was serious work. I would periodically check on her and when she was done she picked up every minute little speck of paper shred. What a good girl and a great paper cutter.

A Weekend Visitor

My friend Sharlene came to visit us for the weekend on her way up and back from Preston Idaho to visit her grandma. It was so much fun to see her again and talk and laugh and reminisce. She is so much fun and we stayed up way to late every night. My kids loved having her here and Katelin let Shar sleep in her bed. We hope she can come visit us again soon.

Easy Bake Oven - Sara, Katelin and Ella

Today Katelin decided she wanted get those creative juices flowing and we broke out the easy bake oven. We used a regular cake mix and googled the mix to water ratio to get it just right. She invited our new neighbor Sara over for the "girls only" baking hour and they had a ton of fun. Then each girl got to frost their own cake. It was a masterpiece. Watch out Rachel Ray. It was so delicious. They made enough for half of our neighbors. Hmmmm! I wonder why all the boys were hanging around today.

Annual 4th of July - Cherry Days Parade

Candy, Candy, Candy and More Candy....... It's Fun To Be A Kid at this parade!

This Train is Movin' On

It sure was great to see Uncle Larry and Aunt Linda. We loved visiting with them and having them around for the two days they were with us. They even took us out to lunch before they left. We should have been the one's taking them out, but they insisted. It was great fun having them around and we will miss them.

The Great Salt Lake

They say that you can actually float in the Salt Lake becuase of the large quantity of salt existing in the lake. There are inlets the flow to it but not a single outlet. Katelin and Jacob decide they had to at least go walk out on the lake. It was really cool until the swarms of brine flies began flying all around their heads, legs, arms, feet... You get the idea! Needless to say they ran back.

Walking on the beach at Antelope Island

Our Visit to Antelope Island

Antelope Island is the largest and most developed island in the Great Salt Lake. With an area of 42 square miles, it is the largest island in the Great Salt Lake, the largest lake in the Western United States, and the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. Perhaps the most alluring feature of Antelope Island is its unique array of wildlife. The island is most famous for its large bison population. The herd fluctuates between 550 and 700, making it one of the largest publicly owned bison herds in the nation. The Antelope Island bison herd is also recognized as one of the oldest in the country. The Bison were introduced to the island in 1893.
Deer, bobcats, coyotes, many varieties of birds and waterfowl also call the island home. Antelope Island holds populations of pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, and millions of waterfowl. http://www.utah.com/stateparks/antelope_island.htm

By the time we drove halfway down the Island we finally came across the buffalo herd. It must have taken us an hour becuase the maximum speed is only 25 mph. But seeing the buffalo up close was really cool.

Taking a Rest. It was a hot day.

Carolyn and the kids at one of the old homesteads on Antelope Island.

Mini Mini Family Reunion

Larry and Linda got to have a quick dinner with us and my brother Ben and his wife Toni and Bekah before they had to get back Home. It was nice to be together for a little while though.

Katelin was so excited when Linda told her she could sleep outside with them.
Ella just thought it was cool laying next to her big sister for 2 minutes.

Jacob had fun exploring every nook and crany.

Uncle Larry and Aunt Linda From Michigan

Uncle Larry is my dads younger brother. Of course, my dad is the better looking of the two. He and Linda went on a road trip this year and stopped by our house for the night. Ben and Toni came up to visit too.

Tuesday, August 19

Where is that Leprechaun?

At the end of June we had a nice summer rain storm and out came this beautiful rainbow. If you look at the stop sign in both pictures you can mentally put the picture together. What a shot!

2 Moms & 5 Children - California or Bust

My cousin Rabilin and I decided to drive out to California for my Aunt Patti's funeral and to visit family. It was us and our five little one's. Our husbands couldn't break away on such short notice so we took the challenge. We stayed with my brother Mike where there were a total of 5 Adults, 10 kids and 1 bathroom. It was little like Circus Circus, but it was well worth the trip. We got to spend some time with Grandma Boggs and my mom flew in from Texas. The day after the funeral we spent time with Grandma Boggs at her home and even went out to eat with all our little kids. It took both Grandma's and both moms to get them all fed at Home Town Buffet. That must have been a site.

Cousins...

We got to go visit John's sister Karen and two of her children Kayla and Logan while on our trip to California. They always get along so well and love spending time together. They are so silly.

Cousins Cousins Cousins

Here are a few really cute shots of the kids with their cousins in California. These are Carolyn's brother Mike's kids. They had a lot of fun together swimming and dancing and playing and just being kids.

Swim Meet

We got to go with Mike and Jenn's family to their children's swim meet. This is the same swimming pool that us kids swam at when we were growing up.

Mike and Jenn

I just wanted to show pictures of my brother Mike and his beautiful wife Jenn and all their cute kids.

Cambria - 9

Lydia - 8

Brinson - 7

D.J. - 3

Devan - 1

Sunday, August 17

"MY" Aunt Patti

Written by Carolyn: I have my Aunt Patti’s hands. In my down time I have had opportunities lately to look at my own hands and hope that I can use them for good as she did. I want to be an instrument in the Lords hands as she was for so many people. She was like a second mom when I was young and she means a lot to me. I am sad to say goodbye to such a beautiful person. My life has been changed in significant ways because I knew her.

Carolyn's Thoughts:

God will call people to care about you and to teach you.
- Henry B Eyring

I truly feel that you can learn something from every person that you come in contact with, but there are certain people that are put in your life for a reason. Some for a short while and others for periods of time to help you, lift you up, love and teach you. Patti was there for me when I was a growing up. I loved her then and didn’t realize all that I was learning from her at the time. Now I appreciate the things I learned and thank the Lord for her being there to teach me those lessons and remember those happy moments.
One story I remember was Patti planting daffodils outside her back door at the Ashlan house on the right side of the steps. They were various colors of yellow and I remember bending down to smell them when I came over in the spring. The first time I saw them in bloom at her house I remember asking her what type of flower it was because I had never seen them and they were so beautiful and different from other flowers I had seen. Like a ray of sunshine in her heavily shaded yard. As the years went by I noticed that she planted different varieties and that allowed them to bloom at different times to make the color last longer. Some bloomed early and some later. Some were bright, others pastel and others with variegated or crinkled blooms. It was her little happy spot in the yard. Her spot of sunshine. Whenever I have seen daffodils I have always thought of my Aunt Patti. I have loved those flowers since I was a child and after coming home from the funeral I decided that I am going to plant my own little happy spot in the yard this next fall. So in the Spring I will have something beautiful to make me happy and remind me of Patti.

An advocate of women, schoolchildren
LDS ward leader also was president of elementary PTA.

By Jim Steinberg / The Fresno Bee
06/25/08 23:28:44

Patti M. Binford was well-known for her compassion and the ability to translate it into action.
Mrs. Binford, 59, of Fresno had suffered pulmonary fibrosis, and died Friday.

She was active in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and had served as president of her ward's relief society, concentrating on the needs of women.

Earlier, she had been a leader among a small group of parents in Fresno Unified School District who challenged administrators and eventually prevailed on them to find more than $13 million to air-condition district schools. She and the ad-hoc group challenged the status quo that had forced tens of thousands of small children and older students routinely to sit in classrooms with temperatures exceeding 90 degrees for hours each day. They returned home literally red-faced on hot days.

Mrs. Binford was born in Lynwood and moved with her family to Fresno, where her father had found a printing job, said her husband, Tom Binford.

She attended Fresno schools, and worked for a telephone company until she graduated from Fresno High School.

She continued at Fresno City College, married and became increasingly involved in her children's schools, serving with the PTA and as president of the Del Mar Elementary School PTA.

That warmed her to schoolchildren's plight inside hot classrooms, Tom Binford said: "When I got here from the Bay Area, I was just blown away. I thought, 'How could anybody in this Valley not have air conditioning?' Administrators had it in their offices."

Mrs. Binford's work with her LDS church deserves at least as much praise, said her husband, mother, Arba Boggs, and close friend, Ellen Thomas.

"Patti was very organized," her mother said. "She was given basic responsibility from our bishop for the care of women in our ward," a geographic and administrative division of the church. "I guess Patti was called to do this."

Mrs. Binford maintained a notebook of all women in her congregation, or ward, and directions to each woman's home, her mother said. She kept track of the ward's "visiting teachers."

"She was born to it," her mother said. "We believe they come with these gifts. She helped a lot of families."

Thomas called Mrs. Binford "a master of organization," a talent she handled "with such dignity and grace."

Mrs. Binford also was an accomplished musician, particularly on piano and organ, teaching music in her ward along with organizational skills and preparedness.

"The compassionate service is something she did so well," Thomas said.

A memorial "graduation service" was held Wednesday in the LDS church on East Alluvial Avenue.

The reporter can be reached at jsteinberg@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6311.