Bill Jones


William Tanner Jones
WILLIAM TANNER JONES August 16, 1919 ~ December 13, 2008 After a very full and wonderful life, Bill Jones, loving husband, devoted father and caring friend peacefully went home to the Lord at his residence in Hemet at the age of 89. Bill, born in Eastland Texas, son of the late Cecil and Pearl Jones, spent most of this childhood in the Texas panhandle enduring the economic challenges of the Great Depression and harshness of the Dust Bowl. Bill moved to Riverside in 1954 and then moved to Hemet in 1978 where he lived for the past 30 years. Bill was a cadet at Texas A & M University from 1938 to 1942, where was on the university's boxing team. After graduating from A & M, he proudly served in the US Army during World War II as a first lieutenant and was in charge of convoys on the Burma Road taking war supplies to China. On a field trip to Southern California as a junior in college, Bill met his bride of 65 years, Frances, while on a boat to Catalina. Bill and Fran were married three years later in Los Angeles. After owning and running an ice cream shop in Eagle Rock and stents as a farmer in Texas, Bill founded Musi-Cal, a sound system contracting and business music service, in Riverside in 1954, and passed the company on to his son, Steve in 1978. Bill served his community as a member of Riverside Rotary Club. He was an enthusiastic and avid supporter of the Texas A &M Aggie football team and tried to never to miss a Southern California Aggie Muster. Through his life Bill enjoyed off-road motorcycling, camping, RVing, traveling and, most of all, spending time with his family. Bill was the consummate Texas gentleman and was never at a loss for wise words and support for his family and friends. William was preceded in death by his sister Charlie Marie Olsen. Bill was loved and will be greatly missed by his wife Frances, his children, Stephen and his wife Marla, Kathleen and her husband Larry, Laura and her husband Brad, Nancy and her husband Pat, twelve grandchildren and four great grandchildren. A visitation is planned for Bill and his family at Miller-Jones Mortuary in Hemet from 10-Noon on December 29th to be followed by a graveside service at Riverside National Cemetery in Riverside, at 1:00 PM at Staging Area #5. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations in Bill's name to Texas A & M Scholarship Foundation (http://giving.tamu.edu/howtogive) or Ramona Hospice in Hemet, CA, 890 W. Stetson Ave., Ste A, Hemet, CA 92543.

Isa's 6th Birthday celebration

We asked her if she wanted a party or to go to Spaghetti Factory and go on the horse and carriage ride around downtown. She picked the carriage ride (hooray!) so I bought her the whole Cinderella get-up. We got ready and head to the Spaghetti Factory, we get about 2 blocks away and I realize that I forgot the little plates that I bought for the cake and we turn around and go back. We get about 4 houses away and realize we forgot to shut the garage door! So finally we head to the Spaghetti Factory around 5:00, we get there and I realize that I forgot her presents from us! UGH! I figured the restaurant wouldn't be to busy. BIG mistake! The wait was an hour and 45 minutes! I think we only waited an hour which was nice though. She loves that restaurant more than anything! So after we finished we went to the Mission Inn and went to the place where the carriage line was, there was another wait...2 hours! Ugh, what a disaster. So we just decided to skip it and try another day.

So, here are some photos of the day:

Putting on her glove:


Coloring with papa:


Ice cream!


Blowing out her candles:


Reading a poem from Nina and Papa:


She was SO excited! She has wanted a Nintendo DS for about a year now.


A few games from Nina and Papa:


Cute carrying case:



In front of a tree in the mission inn:


With Nannie at the mission inn:


At home opening presents from us:


A giant coloring book from Zach:

I bought this book

and I really hope it helps!

Organize now!

With a unique week-by-week approach, Organize Now! gives readers simple and effective tools to organize every aspect of their lives. Jennifer Ford Berry walks the readers through each step of the organizing process for 52 different topics, dealing with each topic one week at a time. Organize Now! is not only easy-to-use but covers a wide variety of topics from paperwork, time management, mental clutter, pets and specific rooms to special events such as moving or vacation planning. The advice is proactive, straightforward and presented in checklists so that readers can see immediate results as they work. Advice for monthly and yearly maintenance is provided. Due to the structure of the book, readers can follow the book from start to finish for a full organizational makeover, or work through the book in any order they wish, targeting the problem areas for their life.

Offers practical, effective and easy-to-use instruction on organizing 52 specific problem areas and is structured so that readers can take a week-by-week approach if desired.



I am starting this January 1st. I can't wait!

light display

This light display is so cool! As you drive up he has a radio station that you listen to that coordinates with the music. So cool! Donovan and I want to try to do it next year. Just to make our neighbors love us even more!

Sorry you hear my kids and then me yelling at my kids in the background!

So if you want to go see it, hurry! Exit Van Buren and go toward woodcrest. Left on Lincoln, right on Gibson. It's 2 or 3 houses on the right.

have you heard of the "better than sex cake"?

I've never had it but I'm guessing this may be what it looks like.

I am such a dork!

We were on our way to my aunt's house to celebrate with my extended family and it was raining and I didn't want to dilly dally in the rain so I stuck my phone in my bra instead of my pocket when I went to get out of the car. Well, 10 or so minutes later and I can't find my phone anywhere! I get out Donovan's phone and I am calling and calling my number, looking under the car seats, in the center console, all over the place. I just say oh well, I will find it in the morning. Then I bend over and thunk...there it is!


Durr!

My friend needs some MAJOR prayers

pray for the Lamberths



I knew Mark in middle school, he was an awesome guy back then so I can imagine how amazing he is now. He was always nice to me when a lot of the boys teased me back then.

Anyway, he was in a terrible accident and really needs every single prayer he could possible get.

Thanks

oh my gosh isn't this true!

The video sucks but the lyrics are hilarious.

6 years ago!

Ready to pop!

my favorite Christmas movies and my favorite quotes from that movie.

7. Home Alone- Is this toothbrush approved by the American Dental Association?
6. National Lampoons Christmas Vacation- Merry Christmas. Shitter was full. (as he drains the trailer pooper in the gutter!)
5. The Polar Express- Here we only got one rule / Never, ever let it cool / Keep it cooking in the pot / Soon we got hot chocolate!
4. It's a Wonderful Life- Every time a bell rings, an Angel gets it's wings.
3. Charlie Brown Christmas-Do innkeeper's wives have naturally curly hair?
2. A Christmas Story-Only I didn't say "Fudge." I said THE word, the big one, the queen-mother of dirty words, the "F-dash-dash-dash" word!
1. Elf-
Emily: You like sugar, huh?
Buddy: Is there sugar in syrup?
Emily: Yes.
Buddy: Then YES!

We went to the Alpine Slide in Big Bear yesterday. We had a blast, despite the snowball nazis. No snowball throwing allowed! Everywhere we went there were these magical announcements telling us not to have fun! Donovan said they secretly wanted to be mall security. =)

There is this awesome people mover type thing that goes up the hill, no walking needed!



Isabella and I going down the hill:


Here we are coming down the hill...backwards!



After leaving the slide place we found a place to park and play, the snow was fluffy so...we sank! We couldn't walk in it because we kept sinking in past our knees.



We had fun anyway, we had a fun snowball fight:


Zach didn't really like it, he screamed for most of the time!


Isabella loved it, she couldn't get enough of the snow:


She was absolutely exhausted!


Here are some of the other photos that I took, there was SO SO SO much snow! We got a huge winter storm last week.

I love this one, I think I may frame it:









I don't know how people live in this much snow, they couldn't even get out their front door!




This is a balcony, completely filled with snow!



The icicles were amazing, some of them were 6 feet long!

my friend Heather

Pointed this out to me, I LOVE it!

tacky holiday sweaters


I think my favorite is Our First Christmas, the 2nd to last photo on page 2.

some parents suck

I'm no where near a perfect parent, I know I yell at my kids too much and I should do more fun things with them but I am sickened by some of the parents that I have seen in the last few days.

Yesterday I drove down to Riverside around 4:00 to deliver a meal to a mom in need. I was getting back on the freeway at Central and it was pouring absolutely POURING rain. I see this kid, like 14 walking, wearing a Poly Bears sweatshirt. His jeans were completely soaked, his cheeks totally red, he was trying to warm himself up at the stop light. I put 2 and 2 together and realized that this kid had walked all the way from Poly to the Central freeway entrance in the pouring rain. What was more important than picking up your kid from school?

Crappy parent #2:
We went to see Beverly Hills Chihuahua (absolutely great movie) at the cheapo $2 theater and there were 2 little girls who were about 3 and 5 screaming and running up and down the aisles during the movie. I understand that kids are hard to control, I TOTALLY understand! But do you really need to let them run around while people are trying to watch a movie?

Crappy parent #3:
During the movie another parent had a baby and it cried for probably 30-45 minutes. Hellloo? Can you not hear your baby? Did you leave it in here and go to another movie?! Rude.

Ok, step aside while I step off my soap box. Thanks.

how cute is this?

I wish I could call this my own!

There are some days


I love and agree with every single thing on this list. Ok, I lied, I never go out without a bra. But every other statement. I am so glad I am "normal"!

Was that a compliment?

"I love your hair, you look like a porcelain doll"

"really, wow...thanks??"

So...

I haven't been able to do this, it's been hard. My grandpa passed away on Saturday morning in his sleep. He turned 89 in August and had heart failure. We visited a little more than a week before he passed, I was glad to have been able to visit with him. He was in bed the entire time and I could tell he was in pain but he laid on his side and watched Zach play cars on the floor. I could tell he enjoyed watching him, maybe remember his son and grandsons playing cars too? Who knows? I made sure we all gave kisses and told him that we loved him knowing it would most likely be the last time we saw him. I loved my papa so much, he was a really big part of my life. My parents always made family very important and we always showed much love and respect to our grandparents. My grandparents were about 45 minutes away so we visited often.

I have been thinking about some of my favorite memories of papa, here are some of many:

-Big red gum, he always had pieces of big red in his big red truck. His entire truck smelled like cinnamon!

-pepper, he put TONS of pepper on everything! I remember him putting it on cantaloupe!

-Trash, I remember him walking along Pismo beach and picking up trash.

-Worthless, his dogs were worthless. Even with the nickel that their dog Jasper swallowed he was still worthless. He even had a spray bottle that said "worthless spray" haha!

-Nickels, he would always say that he would leave a nickel for this or that, if he used the bathroom he would say that he left a nickel.

-Initials, if you bring over your new car to show Papa he will give his approval and then he would say that he was going to carve his initials in it somewhere! I remember when I got my very first car I really thought he was going to do it!

-Dr. Pepper, he loved Dr. Pepper!

-Corney corn bread, he put corn in corn bread!

-Sanfrans, if something was wrong it was always the sanfrans! (a made up name)

-Soft shoulder, every time we would see the soft shoulder road sign he would feel my grandma's shoulder and say "yep, Fran sure does"! What does soft shoulder mean anyway?

-Maroon jumpsuits, he loved the color maroon and wore jumpsuits around the house all the time.

-Texas A&M, he was a huge fan!

There are so many more things about my Papa that I will miss, but my mom gave me this Christmas ornament that says "the best gift we can give to our children are memories" so true! I have so many memories of my papa and I am truly grateful for each one of them.

I love you papa,




Papa and Emily, the best dog ever! In July 2008.

I don't feel like blogging what I should be blogging about. Maybe tomorrow. For now, here is this. Fun!

100 Things
I found this on Cirque du vivre . Thanks, Paige for passing it on.

Play along with us and feel free to add your own original 100 Things.

RULES: There are 100 statements and you bold the ones you have done. Grab it and play for yourself!!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity.
7. Been to DisneyWorld
8. Climbed a mountain.
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept in an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked - Um no....hello didn't you ever watch those scary movies!!!!
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo's David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited the Space Needle in Seattle
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar.
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Auditioned for a show
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House-Walked around the outside. Does that count?
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating - fish count, right?
88. Had chicken pox
89. Saved someones life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

If you've gotten this far, you'll see I have some living to do! How about you? Join along.

I'm hoping this is just some kid

We had 4 pumpkins out in front of our house and then the next day just 3. Last week we had 2 miniature Christmas trees out front and now we only have 1. I think we should buy ourselves a security camera for Christmas so I can see who is doing this!

Mean people suck.

So true

Dan was right, this DID change my life!

art?

I don't think so
and I would never pay $150 for it!

Updates

On Friday we went to see Santa at the association clubhouse with some friends. We got cupcakes, the biggest cupcakes I have ever seen!





Isabella asked for this dog from Costco, it's like $200! I told her Santa cant spend that much on each kid so she won't be getting that dog. I got her a cheaper version for $30, she won't care. Zach sat on Santa's lap and saw the giant basket of candy canes and when Santa asked what he wanted he said "a candy cane" hahaha!



Here they are with their friends Samuel and Luke.




It was decorated so beautifully!


Here is a fountain in the lake


Here is an accidental shot, but I like it!


Donovan came home from New Mexico on Sunday afternoon so the kids and I made a sign, and yes welcome is backwards. Darn kids can't spell! (I taped it together and didn't feel like making a whole new one). The kids were SO excited to see daddy!

I've been MIA

My a/c cord broke like this one, only mine singed! Smoke and all!



I went to Best Buy where I purchased my macbook and purchased an extended warranty and they ordered it and then told me it was backordered. I ordered it on Wednesday and started using Donovan;s computer since he was in NM for the week. I decided to go to the Apple store today to see what they could do and they replaced it on the spot! Apple ROCKS!

my new favorite thing:

It's so thick and hearty, I feel full just having one sandwich. It's also quite tasty!

bummer

When we were driving to Pismo I heard a big rock hit the windshield but we didn't see a spot anywhere. Last night we parked the truck outside because the garage was a disaster from our Christmas decorating. Well, I get in the car this morning and there is a foot long crack in the windshield from the cold air. =(

Our trip!

We played lots of games, Wal Mart was having a sale on games so we bought Connect 4, Operation, Battleship, Blink, War and Trivial Pursuit. The kids loved connect 4 and operation, Donovan and I loved Blink and War.





We went to San Luis Obispo Children's museum they had the most amazing exhibits!

They had a human organ which had air blowing out of galvanized pipes and when you put your hand over the holes it made music!



They had a movie making program where you took photos and then they put them together into a movie. Here is Donovan's movie.



They had an exhibit, that I can't really explain!



We went to Avila Farm
and saw the cutest cow ever!




One the way home we saw the most amazing rainbow:





And then it started raining...HARD!



We made it home safely, after an 8 hour drive that should have taken us 5 hours!

We had Thanksgiving at the Hirsch house, it was a delicious day.

The boys spent most of the day in the library playing video games:



It was a cloudy and cool day, is this what a Thanksgiving is supposed to be? It's usually 80 degrees outside!






We watched Alvin and the Chipmunks and my mother-in-love and I watched Dirty Dancing! Of course the kids walked in during the love scene so we had to turn it off!

We saw this bug, it was seriously HUGE, like 3" long! YUCK!