Happy Pioneer Day

On Friday we celebrated "Pioneer Day", commemorating July 24th, 1847. This is the day that the first group of Latter-day Saints arrived in the Great Salt Lake valley to plant their crops, build homes & temples, and worship in peace. They had been driven from Missouri, then from Illinois, traveled 300 miles across Iowa and then 1,000 miles over pains and mountains. We remember them for their great sacrifice and hope that we can show similar faith in the challenges we face. We had a Picnic yesterday to celebrate and Helen looked great in her bonnet. Below is Helen in her pioneer get-up thanks to Aunt Amber's fine sewing.

For our Pioneer Day activity this year, we thought it would be fun to find the names of our ancestors who made this trek. There are a few pioneer ancestors in Michelle's family that we have documented dates and stories of their journeys west. Many other ancestors may have made the trek on foot but we don't have good proof. In all we came up with 38 names for our list using these criteria -- 1) born in some place other then Utah or Idaho, 2) died in Utah or Idaho, and 3) lived between 1847 and 1869. (The transcontinental railroad was finished in 1869, starting a new era in pioneer travel.)

Our "Likely" Pioneer Ancestors 1847-1869



Johnson Ancestors
Gustaf Johnson Sweden to Utah
Anna Sofia Christenson Sweden to Idaho
Niklas Christensson Sweden to Idaho
Anna Elizabet Anderson Sweden to Idaho
Benjamin Franklin Blaylock Mississippi to Utah
Elizabeth Annie Almira Land Alabama to Utah

Hanson Ancestors
John Alfred Hanson Born on the plains of Nebraska in 1866
Hakan Hanson Sweden to Idaho
Karna Jonsson Sweden to Utah
Hakan Anderson Sweden to Idaho
Cecilia Svenson Sweden to Idaho
Mary Magnel Olsson Sweden to Utah
Lars Svensson Sweden to Utah
Karl Johan Beckstrand Sweden to Utah
Karen Nielson Rau Denmark to Idaho
Ida Louisa Svenson Sweden to Utah
Maria Louisa Svensdotter Sweden to Utah

Wright Ancestors
Hyrum Isaac Wright England to Utah
John Wright England to Utah
Charlotte Smith England to Utah
John Smith England to Utah
Hannah Sutton England to Utah
Matthew Bezzant England to Utah
Maria Ann Cook England to Utah
William Wadley England to Utah
Isabella McKay Scotland to Utah
William McKay Scotland to Utah
Helen or Ellen Oman Scotland to Utah
Joseph Watts Halliday England to Utah
George Halliday England to Utah
Sarah Jane Kendall England to Utah
Cyrus Benjamin Hawley Canada to Idaho
Mary Ann Allred Missouri to Idaho

Percival Ancestors
Samuel Corbett Maine to Utah
Daniel Dewey Corbett Maine to Utah
Elmira Bengs Wright Maine to Utah
Camilla Dorothy Jacobson Denmark to Utah
Ann Dorothy Jorgensoatter Denmark to Utah


I apologize for misspellings, omissions, and mistakes. If anyone has good stories or resources so we can improve and add to our list for future Pioneer Day celebrations, please send them along.

Red Letter Day

We have great news to report . . . We spent the last 3 days in "lock-down" mode at home so we could focus our efforts and finish our upholstery project! It had been 7.5 months since taking the first staple out, and it was time to sprint to the finish. In defense of our slow pace I'll note that we've never reupholstered anything in our lives before this and we only worked on it when Ryan was home in the evenings/weekends and Helen was asleep. Take a look below - what do you think?



You're all invited to come over and try out the sweet reclining features any time. You may say it looks a little plain, but rest assured that I'm going to find some flashy fabric for pillows in the near future.


Here are a few skills/truths that we have learned from this project and will apply during our next big project (which is reupholstering the matching 3-seat couch).
1. How to check the nap of the fabric. Ryan's almost got this one down
2. Time management. The key is to imagine getting a part done in 1/2 hour but setting aside at least 3 hours.
3. Not to sew over the welting/piping. This leads to trips to the sewing machine repair store.
4. Expect to do each section at least 3 times. Expect more than 3 in the case of the easiest part, the foot rest.
5. We only need one couch . . . ?

Potato Salad

Although common knowledge in my family, the rest of the world might not know that I have an extreme distaste for potato salad. Was there ever a girl who looked upon hot weather with such trepidation as I, knowing that as soon as the grill was fired up the potato salad season was also upon us. More than once was I tempted as a child/teenager to destroy the boiled potatoes and eggs chilling in the refrigerator before they could be combined into the side dish I spent many a long lonely nights sharing the dinner table with.

But today marks the beginning of a new era in my life: I found a potato salad that I enjoy. I have included the recipe for all the other people who don't like potato salad in the world. I can only imagine that there are many of you.

Bacon Potato Salad
(Adapted from Simple & Delicious magazine, july/aug 2009)
serves 8
4 c. cubed red potatoes
1/4 c. chopped onion
1/2 t. minced garlic
2 bacon strips
2 T. minced fresh parsley (ours came from our garden)
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 T. Parmesan cheese
2 T. ranch salad dressing
1 T. mustard
2 t. white vinegar
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper

Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil; reduce heat and cook covered for 10-15 minutes until tender. Drain.
Cook bacon strips in fry pan over medium heat. Remove, drain and crumble bacon. Add onion and garlic to 1 T. bacon grease and cook until tender.
In a large bowl, combine potatoes, onion, bacon and parsley. In small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Pour over potato mixtures; toss to coat. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled.