~Day 2• 97: Tales of a solo trip north... Part 2

Thanks to my aunt Michelle for letting us stay at her house halfway through our drive. It was nice to have a place to stay. The kids enjoyed playing ping pong for awhile before we took off! The kids were in awe of the large red hill that loomed before us as we drove out of Ivins and wanted me to take a picture of it. 

We stopped at ihop for bfast and the kids were putting their heads together to figure out their puzzles while we waited for our food to arrive. They each picked their own food and they ate it all. Good kids. 

We stopped in Salina to visit my grandparents (my dad's parents). I don't get to see them often, so the two hour visit was really nice. The girls liked playing out in the yard. They had ponies all over the place. 

Ashton enjoyed talking about books with grandma. She loves to read and he loves to read.  He was telling her all about the free mason books he likes to read. She also likes hugs. So she got a lot of hugs that day. 

It was so nice to sit and talk with them. Grandpa never used to take the time to sit and talk because he was always busy with something. But today he dropped everything he was doing and conversed with us for a long time! It was so wonderful. I wish I could get up here more often. But I'll take the times I have and cherish those memories. 

After leaving their house, I took a picture of it. It's the top left picture. I also drove by my great-grandparents' house and took pictures of that property. (Phillo and Myrle Madsen) the yellow house (top center), the little red shed and the bluish car shed.  I spent many hours playing and being imaginative around the properties. So many memories have been made at these two locations.

 I remember going all over my gparents' yard.  They always had beautiful flowers and plants growing all around the house.  My girl cousin's and I would always hold 'Relief Society' out back while the boys held priesthood.  The times spent with my cousins here was always fun.  Grandma always played records on her large record console.  Our favorite was Winnie the Pooh.  She had puzzles and very old toys and Lincoln logs. 

I remember 'Baby Grandma' (g-gma Myrle) had a doll with blond hair and a blue dress that she let us play with.  She had magnets everywhere on her fridge that we rearranged.  I loved making mud pies and burning ants with a magnifying glass, with her encouragement.  I remember playing house out in the blue shed... there was a stove and old cooking things to play with.  She would let us have free-reign and would play with us.

I also found my great-great-grandparents' house (bottom right). This is the Richard Ray Jensen house (great-grandma Myrle's parents).  I remember going into the house, and I believe it was yellow then.  G-G-Grandma Jensen had a little fluffy white dog names Frosty.  It would jump up on me.  I was very small then.

I forced my children to hear stories of each of these places.  I made them put down the electronics and actually look at the locations that I loved so much.  It doesn't mean much to them, but I still wanted them to see and hear about them.  That's also why I'm putting these pictures in my blog.  I want to be able to look back and have these memories for others to see and read.

I drove by the Salina cemetery to visit some graves.  Brookie is standing by the Phillo and Myrle Madsen grave.  I also found the Richard Ray Jensen/Mary K. Peterson headstone.  And the Christina C. Bench/Harold W. Bench -1st husband (Sheron Madsen's grandma).  Below is a picture of some of these people who lived in the houses!

The picture was taken in 1978 in Salina, Utah. 
Top L-R: Arlen Leon Madsen, Sheron Harward Madsen, Violet Myrle Jensen Madsen (Myrle V. on headstone), Phillo Leon Madsen.
Bottom L-R: Richard Ray Jensen, Clair Leon Madsen, Mary K. Peterson Jensen, SharaLynn Madsen Cardona, CindyAnn Campbell Madsen (pregnant with Kristopher Leon Madsen).