New eye wear for some.

I forgot to pass on some important news. The kids had an appointment the last couple of weeks with the eye doctor. Paige upgraded her glasses to something a little more grown up and started to try out contacts. Parker had to get glasses due to the fact he was having a very hard time seeing about everything. He couldn't see too much in school and at home he was six inches away from the TV all the time. He is very proud of his new glasses and has been very good about wearing them and taking good care of them as well. He actually was excited about getting them and was very fun to watch as he tried on several pair before he chose his favorites.

I am still getting used to the fact he is wearing glasses, but I think he is very cute and very smart looking. Just a new look for both Paige and Parker.

What's new with us.

Here is October and November's post all in one. We all were able to enjoy halloween on Saturday, Oct. 30. We went to the trunk or treat our ward hosts every yea. The kids always bring home too much candy. I always worry about Madison and the abundance of candy she gets, but we seem to manage and make it all disappear within a week or two. This year the kids were very imaginitive with their costumes. Meghan was a puppet and dismissed her strings at the last minute and went as a doll. Paige was a gypsey, Madison was Athena from Percy Jackson movie and Parker went as a Power Ranger. All was fun and now they are making plans for next year.


Before we enjoyed the Halloween trunk or treat, we as a family took a short trip up to St. George to take family pictures at the Jacob Hamlin home. The week before our youth from our ward took a trip up to St. George and visited several sites. Meghan thought the Jacob Hamblin home was the perfect setting for our family pictures this year. Here are a few of the pictures. I just can't decide which one I like the best.

Overall, we are staying busy. Everyone is doing well in school. Jim is getting the hang of his new classes, I have only FIVE classes left after this semester is over, and Meghan is still practicing her driving skills and trying to get all the hours in so she can schedule her driving test for her license. We look forward to having Grandma Coffey down for Thanksgiving and take a breather from school for the Christmas holiday. That is a short review of what we have been up to. More exciting posts to come.

FRESH STRAWBERRIES and a HUGE CANTALOPE

I went out to the garden today and found a handful of strawberries. I was so excited because the snails or some other bugs didn't get them before we did. Our strawberry patch is growing beautifully thanks to Jim for using miracle grow on them. I just LOVE growing home grown fruits and veggie because everything tastes better than the store bought ones. YUM!

After finding the strawberries, I then began looking at the rest of the garden which seems to be finished growing except this green, round squash looking thing. We have watched this plant grow all summer and the leaves looked like a cantalope, but then it got so big I just thought it was some sort of winter squash. I picked it because it looked over ripe and thought I might just look at it to see what color of squash it might be. When I cut it open my nose told me it was a cantalope and my eyes couldn't believe how big it got. We brought it in, cut it up, and chilled it for a while then we set it on the dinner table and enjoyed it. It was so big I cut a bowl up for our neighbor to share. Okay, I can truely say miracle grow does it's job.

Survival of the first day of school

We all have survived our first day of school. Jim was a bit nervous for his master's classes. Meghan has been on cloud nine because she is finally with kids from middle school (or should I say 8th grade which has been her MOST FAVORITE GRADE). Paige is just in her element of being a social bug at Lied Middle School, and Madison is just a bit nervous about forgetting her new teacher's name on the first day of school. Parker woke up early and couldn't wait to get to school. "No first day of school tears for my mom, I am the 4th child and she is excited to send me to school", thought Parker . He wasn't all too excited to take pictures to document the memorible event. He did think I would stay outside the classroom door for two and half hours so he was a bit confused when he had to walk to the playground to be picked up.

MOM!! No more pictures. That is enough!! I want to go learn. On his second day of school he proved to his teacher that counting is easy. He had a TEST to see if he could count to 10 and he went up to 72 when the teacher stopped him for another student. He wanted to see how far he could count but he does have to leave room for improvement.

Madison and Parker were so eager to go to school. I wish there was a special bottle to capture all the excitement and release the excitment back on them in January when school is getting to be just school and just part of the daily routine. We shall see how long this excitement lasts. I survived all my classes as well last week. I started a week before everyone so I had a head start of everyone. I will finish before everyone too. Now that we all are back in school, we get to all have study time and quiet time. YEA!!!!! We shall see how long that lasts.

We have one week of summer left and we have done some exciting things last week as we wrap- up the summer . I took the kids up to Mount Charleston to a hike we took with our neighbors last fall, but never found the real trail head. I was determined to find it and complete the hike for Mary Jane Falls. I almost missed the switchbacks because it is not clearly marked, but we were pointed in the correct direction from a friendly hiker close by. It was a great hike. A little harder than I expected but the kids did great. I owe my THANKS to Meghan and Chad for helping me carry Parker at times when his little legs just hurt with pain. Following are some pictures we took at the top enjoying the waterfalls. Everybody got a little wet from the falls, but Meghan decided to drench herself in the water.

At the top of the falls we climbed up into this little cave so to speak. Meghan didn't like the tight closeness of the cave but she was patient so I could get a picture with everyone.

Last week we also celebrated Madison's 9th birthday. She loved the apron I made her and was so excited to take a couple of friends over to her uncle's home to use his COOL POOL. Thanks uncle Steven for the use of the COOL POOL.

We bought a bunch of noodles to play in the pool and afterwards Madison gave each of her guests a noodle to take home as a reminder of the awesome fun they all had. We shall see how interesting this Fall is with my family. I am enrolled in my second yearof my Master's at UNLV, Jim has decided to start his Masters this fall, and all the kids even Parker will be in school. I have decided that we are an "Education Family" this fall as all of us will be in school learning new things. It should be very interesting how all of it will come together. Stay tuned!! Hopefully, Iwill be more organized to post something about our family each week.

Happy 9th Birthday Madison

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MADISON!! I sure have enjoyed the last NINE years with you. Hope you have a wonderful day with all your friends. Love you much.

Our week out of the heat.

Our week out of the heat was very, very fun this year. We started out at Bryce Canyon and camped out for one day then we traveled to Durango, Colorado where we always have a week long of work and fun.

Smores: Yes, our family loves to make smores. We made them all the time while we were at Grandma Sheila's and at Bryce Canyon. Yummy treat.

Our first stop on our week out of the heat was Bryce Canyon. We camped out and then went and explored Bryce Canyon from bottom to the top. We really enjoyed seeing the sights and spending time as a family.

This year on the little farm we were able to make an abundance of applesauce. We ended up with 26 pints of applesauce, 13 quarts of apple juice, 2 batches of apple/apricot fruit leather (fruit roll-ups the old fashion way) and 4 batches of apple/cinnamon.

Mowing the fields and the lawn was another little project we all enjoyed doing. In fact, it was so popular that we had to make sure everyone got a turn.

While we were at Grandma Sheila's we also had many little projects to do. Jim built a flowerbed for my Mom and did all the hard work of leveling the stones and getting them in place. Paige repainted an old milk cabinet from my Great Grandmother, Mama Nartha Priestwich and turned it into a cabinet to hold Mama Nartha's old china that has been in storage for twenty years.

We had a great time at the farm and the time always goes too fast. If you want to see all the photos we took on the "Week out of the heat" go to Meghan, Jim, or mine facebook pages to see the full album.

Way to go Madison

Madison had her all-star swim meet today. She did super great. She qualified in the 25M butterfly and the 25M backstroke. She surprised us in the butterfly by getting 2nd place overall and it was very, very close. Her time and the 1st place time was separated by .10 of a second. Very close. She did so well and we are very proud of her. She was 6th overall in the backstroke. She improved so much this year.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Okay, I haven't posted since Paige's birthday and that was a while. I am trying to figure out why nothing fits anymore. I guess there has been a lot of updates that none of the backgrounds I like fit my blog anymore. I am in the process of figuring it out. Like always I have good intentions to write but have been busy the last little while with school, work, and dealing with Jim's unemployment that now has gone on for almost 5 months. School will be done Aug. 4 and I will have a good 25 days of break from my Master's program. We as a family are planning to visit my mom in Durango for a week and then when we get home we can get serious about school for all of us. YES, all six of us are going back to school. Jim and I will be working on our Master's and then everyone else in their respective grades, and Parker will start Kindergarden. Hopefully, I will figure out everything in the coming months for all to enjoy the updates of the COFFEYBUZZ.

Happy 13th Birthday Paige.

HAPPY 13th Birthday Paige!! I am glad you are my daughter. This is one of my favorite pictures of you when you realized you LOVED italian dressing. You sat down in the kitchen and began drinking right out of the bottle. Paige still loves italian dressing to this day. You have grown into a beautiful young lady. I love you lots. May you have many more wonderful birthdays to share with us.

Wow! Where have I been?

Well, it sure has been a while since I posted something. Many wonder where I have been. Well, to tell you the truth I have a lot of time working on my Practicum hours for my master's program in education counseling this semester. On the days I wasn't putting in hours for my practicum, I was probably studying or working as a guest teacher her in Clark country school district. Then as school finished up I began putting in more hours as a guest teacher to earn extra money because Jim still hasn't found another job. OH yes, Jim lost his job around March 15 because he was no longer a good match for the company he was employed with. Needless to say, It has been crazy but we are managing and I am working almost everyday to make up for the short fall in money. We as a family are doing well. Jim has done amazing things here at home since I am not at home much. He plays with Parker, carpools for the kids, and still has time to put in a couple of job applications on top of it. Thanks Jim for doing so much!! Hope that updates you for a while. I will try to write more often but can't promise much since I am trying to work everyday and prepare for a cruise with my Mom and sister the week of May 15. Until later!! Have a great day. ...

Happy Birthday Parker

Parker is 5 years old today. WOW!! How time does fly. He is so excited about his birthday and so excited to invite friends over to play. Happy Birthday. I hope you have a great day.

A tribute to my Dad

Loren Emil Walter Aug 11, 1940-Sept 19, 2009
Life time Durango resident Loren Emil Walter passed away at his home after an extended illness with lymphoma, on Saturday September 19, 2009.

Loren was born to Charles and Carrie Walter in Durango on August 11, 1940. He graduated from Durango High School in 1959.

After graduation he enlisted in the United States Air Force, and was stationed in Maine, USA and Tripoli, Libya in Africa. He served on the Air Force Bases as a Military police officer, and played football for the Air Force in Tripoli in his spare time.

After his tour of duty in the Air Force he returned to Durango and went to work with his father, Charles Walter, owner of the E & W Conoco Station at 19th and Main Ave.

Loren was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on July 2, 1964. He married Sheila Moss on August 14, 1964. They were sealed in the Manti, Utah temple on August 14, 1965. They made their home in Durango for the next 45 years.

Loren worked with his father from 1964 to 1974 at the E & W Conoco. When his father retired in 1974 Loren became the owner and managed the station until 1982 when his lease was cancelled. From 1982 to 1989 Loren owned and operated the 8th street Shell station. He then went to work for Neilson Construction Co. for a short time as an oiler. He then worked as a mechanic and oiler for Jerry Lucas at Melco Construction. In the fall of 2002 he went to work for Bobby Rathjen at Rathjen Construction until his retirement in June of 2008.

Loren was an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saint, and served as a Sunday School President, In the Stake Sunday School Presidency, Executive Secretary, Counselor in the Bishopric, High Counselor, and on the Church cleaning committee.

Loren loved the out doors and was an avid hunter and fisherman. Fly fishing was his passion He taught his children and grandchildren to fish. Loren was not one to sit still. He took pride in caring for his home, yard and garden. He became involved with his children during their years in 4-H and would help them with their animal projects. He was also a great support in their athletic endeavors. He loved to hear what and how his grandchildren were doing. He loved being with his children and taught them many life long skills.

Loren is survived by his wife of 45 years , Sheila Walter of Durango; his children Neysa Rummler (Kevin) of Cypress CA Nicholas Loren Walter (Stephanie) of Corona, CA; Keysha Stutz (Doug) of Rexburg ID; and Kendra Coffey (Jim) of North Las Vegas, NV. Brothers Richard Walter of Dolores, Co; Denny Walter of Sonora, CA; Larry Walter of Durango, Co; sisters Paula Fuller of Boise, ID; Dorothy Smith of San Luis Obispo, CA; Caroline Mortan of Phoenix, AZ; 17 grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews and in-laws.

There will be a viewing at Hood Mortuary in his honor on Thursday September 24, 2009 at 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Funeral services will take place on Friday September 25th 2009 at 11:00am at L.D.S. Church, 2 Hill top Circle in Durango Colo.
Interment will be held the same day following the funeral service at Green Mount Cemetery.

I LOVE YOU DAD!

Today, I pay tribute to my loving Dad. I will treasure the memories we created and will always remember those lessons so tenderly taught. We will miss you but know we will see you again. Love you much. We will meet again soon.

Madison's Baptism

Madison's baptism day: September 5, 2009 at 4:00 p.m. at the North Las Vegas Stake Center located at 50 E. Azure Avenue. There were 10 kids to be baptized that day in our stake. It was a very busy, but memoriable day for Madison. Her Dad, Jim, did the baptism and confirmation. We did miss Grandpa Loren, Grandma Sheila, and Grandma Moss due to Grandpa being sick. Our prayers go out to Grandpa Loren for a speedy recovery. We love you much.

Madison's friends from her primary class and neighbor friend too. From left to right, Cole (in purple), Maggie Allen, Madison, Joseph Porter (also got baptised that day), and Ben Zohner. Thanks to all who came to support Madison in her baptism. Thanks for the love and support.

Happy 8th Birthday Madison

Happy Birthday to you!!! Today we went to get Madison's ears pierced and she was so brave. She didn't even shed a tear. She picked out these beautiful white diasy shaped earrings that will match her dress when she gets baptised on Sept. 5.



Before the piercing guns....

During the process.... She was very good and didn't even flinch. Way to go. You look beautiful.

Pictures from Durango

When things get quiet around the house I remember to check on Madison and Parker. When I found them, Madison had dressed up Parker in the dog's scraves and coat. They had used every single item that was in the bag in the closet. I must say a picture is still worth a thousand words. I try to remember these cute moments when they are so wild around the house.
One activity that everyone wanted to do was riding a horse. Paige has been wanting to do this everytime we go to Durango. This year, my parents neighbors agreed to let my kids ride his mild horse Taylor. After many years, I still remember how to ride a horse. My mom says it is like riding a bike, once you have learned you never forget.

Meghan was not so sure about riding a horse. She got on went around the field and got off. She didn't need another turn.

Paige loved riding the horse. Twice wasn't enough. She wanted to make the horse run but couldn't get Taylor to do more than a gallop.

Parker and Madison enjoyed riding the horses too.

The real reason we go to Durango every year about the same time is to help pick raspberries. We made raspberry jam and tri-berry jam this year. I can't remember how many batches we made but we came home with 36 jars of jam (raspberry and tri-berry made with raspberries, strawberries and blackberries), and 22 pints of frozen raspberries. We should have a year's supply at least.

Paige learning how the whole processes works. She even passed off a 10 hour project for personal progress.

Parker and Madison loved to help smash the blackberries through the stainer. Blackberry seeds are much bigger than raspberry seeds so straining them would give you a smoother jam in the end.

The outside firepit was a HUGE success. Last year my mom had my nephew build a porch like area in the oak brush just off the side of the house. We had a lot of fun building fires and making smores to eat. Parker loved to fuel the fire and many times it got pretty big that I was watching the tops of the trees. We love the farm and all we can do on it to escape from life for several days. It was so peaceful to watch the fire and just not worry about anything. Life is pretty simple.

Parker was in charge (with supervision) to keep the fire going after all smores where cooked. We sat for a couple of hours and enjoyed it. Later, we all found we were eaten by misquitoes. A large pond was right over the fence from the firepit.

My family with my parents at the Bar-D. It has always been a fun place to go since I was a little kid. The beautiful red rocks and scenery is just as I remember too.... BEAUTIFUL and BREATH TAKING.

The last night we were there we went to the BAR-D. The BAR-D has been a family tradition ever since I can remember. You have a chuckwagon dinner with entertainment. Well, I think Parker was bored so here are the pictures we got of the evening. Never let a four year old be in charge of the camera.