First Words

I will admit I am very excited about having Ross close by. I didn't get to do as much with just the two of us when he was little as I would have liked. Maybe we'll have more of those chances now.

When you have a child it is always fun to remember first words. When we adopted Ross he was very careful not to say anything at all. We stayed in a little apartment in Guatemala City while the paper work was being processed. He was the epitomy of silence. Try as we could we could get nothing to part from his lips. Ross' attempts at learning english was a delight but for now I will discuss his first words. Ross was close to 4 so he could talk. I had a little picture book I would read to him in Spanish and point and ask him what animals they were. He was careful, very careful to never respond. However he eventually slipped up and out came "gato" or cat. He quickly placed his hands over his lips at the idea of being caught. The second word was when he climbed into a cold shower and exclaimed with Latin exuberance, "Ai, Yi Yi," when the shock of the cold water hit. Later he poked his had out of the door when a thunderstorm drifted over and distinctly said "Mama Mia," to the clap of thunder.

We were walking down the street with Annelisa and Ross was right behind us. I heard him very softly but distinctly say, "Mama y Papa, y Bebe y Gilberto, somos familia" which translated says Mom and Dad and baby and Gilberto (his name) we are a family. Finally the last day, I took Ross to a Doctors appointment. Well the doctor brought me into a room while the nurse took Ross into another room, mind you Ross was still not speaking. The Doctor was rattling off to me in Spanish and I understood one tenth of what he said. After a few minutes Ross comes running back into the room screaming to the top of his lungs, "Papa, Papa, Papa" and climbs on my lap wanting to be rescued from that scary nurse. After that he talked. More Rossisms another day.

"Rocks" Olsen

It took years before the driveway was paved. When Annelisa was around 6 years old I remember seeing her running full speed up the driveway on some very sharp rocks. Now I have walked barefoot on rocks before, but it was always a careful crawl. "Annelisa," I shouted, "How can you run on those sharp rocks?" I imagined blood on those tender tootsies. Instead she matter of factly said, " Gee Dad, my middle name is "Rocks.""

Uncle Ross you still haven't told me if you would sit next to me, I really want to be your friend- well anyone else nice sit next to me?

"Listen, we have to break this door open or we're going to drown" from the Journel of Ernest Robert TIgner

In the summer of 1911 (grandpa was 11 years old) we had a huge crop of corn and wheat. It had been exceptionally warm. All of us except for Dad had retired for the night. My dad was studying and reading the Bible. He stepped outside for a few minutes. As he opened the back door, he new something was not right. The air was just like a vacuum. Over to the southwest he saw large black clouds rolling towards our home.

He got us up and we went down in the cellar. The cellar had two doors that sloped up. You would swing one back one direction and one the other direction then step down the steps into the cellar where we stored food. We got down in the cellar and the storm hit. We could hear the wind howling and the rain with it, as we huddled in the cellar. We had beaten a path to the cellar from the house getting food and pretty soon water started coming down that path right under the steps into the cellar.

I began to get excited when the water got up around our ankles and then up to our knees. We knew if the water kept getting higher we would have to get out of there. Suddenly the wind broke off a fork of the elm tree above the cellar and it came right down over the door. That created some excitement. Dad went over to raise the cellar door but could not budge it.

We had a lantern. Dad got his shoulders under the door and hollered for Elmer and me to help him. All three of us were on the step and water was getting waist high by then. "Now listen to me, back up, back up." We crowded together, "Listen, we have to break this door open and get out of here, or we're going to drown." If anybody ever hunched over and lifted, we did. We broke out and got back into the house. Debris and shingles were lying all over the place, a tornado had just missed the house!

The tornado took our orchard, trees and all, right out by the roots. Over in the pasture,where the walnut and oat trees were, the tornado cut a swath right through the grove. Every tree in that grove was twisted off about three or four feet from the stump just like you would twist off a small twig with your finger. The whirling wind picked up the trees carried them out, dropped them here and there, all over the pasture. What a terrible thing to see!

The rain and wind flattened our cornfield like a pancake. The ears were just about ready to form with kernals on them and it flattened all of them. My brother and I rowed all over the cornfield the next day in our rowboat. When the water came down, what a sorry sight that place was. Dad had always wanted to live in Kansas. he thought it was ideal country. After the tornado, he did not feel so good about Kansas.

Eric's note: Great grandpa and grandma left Kansas soon thereafter for eastern Washington. Good thing because that is where grandpa Tigner met Mae Louise Nugent in just a few years, quite a romantic story but that will be for another day.

Gone bear hunting see you in a few days

"Can Eric come out and play?" or "Be careful when you give art"

Take a good look at this painting. It was painted by my great aunt Laura Jackson and it has the date 1927 on it. It was given to my folks as a present several years after they were married by Aunt Laura probably around 1950. She was my father's older half sister. Here is the story.

Mom did not like the painting. It was relegated to the closet. When I was five years old (1956) we lived on Hilyard Street in Eugene. My best friend was Jimmy. Jimmy knocked on the front door. "hello Mrs. Olsen can Eric come out and play?" Mom replied, "I'm sorry Jimmy, Eric is just sitting down to dinner." Jimmy, "Boy Mrs. Olsen, that sure smells good." Well Mom invited Jimmy to sit down for dinner at our dining table with the family and Aunt Laura who had arrived that afternoon for a visit. Jimmy, "Wow Mrs. Olsen I sure like that new painting." Jimmy said pointing to Aunt Laura's painting that had been pulled from the closet that am and placed above the dining room table in the alcove. "Oh Jimmy." mom choked, "that painting isn't new that's always been there." "Oh no, Mrs. Olsen, I'm sure, that painting is new, I've never seen that here before." Mom and Dad immediately shouted him down and changed the subject. Well as soon as we were done eating, Mom quickly told us why don't don't we go outside and play. As we left Jimmy says "I sure like that new painting Mrs. Olsen." My mom always wondered why a five year old would take such an interest in art and at that most inoportune time. She always laughed about Jimmy and how she just couldn't get him to keep quiet. Whenever I asked her what Aunt Laura said, mom would shake her head and just laugh.

P.S. This watercolor hangs in the landing at the beach house in Gleneden Beach. When I got older I told mom that I thought it was quite beautiful.(I still do) It depicts a moonlit scene with a stream, swans (geese perhaps?) a bridge and cottages with light coming out of the windows. It is painted in soft blue and gray tones. I guess because I liked it I ended up with it.

"I had a dog!" from the life story of Ernest Robert Tigner, my maternal grandfather

When we got out of Wenatchee twenty or thirty miles to the little town of Trinidad, (NE Washington) we pulled into a vacant lot and were eating our lunch. (grandpa was eight years old and they were moving by horse and wagon, around 1908) A dog came over and I , of course, started throwing him tidbits of our lunch . The dog became very friendly and so I begged my dad to buy me that dog.

He was a good-sized bulldog. He was not a purebred, but he was a beautiful brown and white dog. Dad looked the dog over and said, "That's a pretty nice dog, but that dog ain't for sale." We got ready to leave and the dog started back to the thouse where he came from. Then my dad said, "Welll, go on over there to the house and ask the folks if they want to sell the dog."

I took off with that dog and went over to the house and knocked on the back door. A lady came to the door, and I told her that we were moving to north of Spokane, out in timber country, and we did not have a dog. I asked her if she would sell that dog.

Then she started crying. That confused me quite a bit, and finally she wiped her eyses and said, "Sonny, if you want the dog, the dog is yours, " She continued, "I had a boy just about your age who passed away two months ago, and that dog has never been the same. They were constant pals." She told me, "You take the dog, because I know you will take good care of him." Boy did I take off. I had a dog!"

Departure from the Norm: Do Wive's really know their Husbands?

I'm going to answer Eric's tag, and let's see how well I really do know him. I thought this might be fun to get some of "momma's input". He can correct the ones I am wrong about, or elucidate further...

#1 Three Things I can't do:

-Keep track of a cell phone
-Close Cupboard Doors
-Massage Ann's feet more than 1 minute

#2 Three Things I think you should listen to:

-Your father's excellent advise
-The prophet Eric yes but actually Sacrament meeting every sunday whether you want to be there or not
-Your conscience

#3 Three Things Not to Listen to:

-Satan
-Negative Thoughts
-Asking yourself "what if?", or second guessing yourself. Once you make a decision, stick with it, until or unless it is proven manifestly wrong Eric Yes: almost there but I would tweak this a little bit. If you have a big problem and it consumes you. Think it out, come to a conclusion. Imagine the worse thing that can happen and think it through. When you are done figure out a solution or how to deal with it. Make a decision that is sound and you are at peace with. Then later that night or the next day or whenever you start to obsess about the problem again, remember that you have thought it out and come to an answer. Concentrate on that answer and resist the impulse to rehash what you have already resolved.

#4 Three Things I'd like to learn

-How to sail a large round-the-world blue-water sailboat
-How to sing like Pavarotti
-How to never get another ticket/fender bender Eric: not on my list I would add as number 1 here "whats in the sealed plates- easily number one"

#5 Three Things I watched as a kid

-The Fugitive Eric: nope "The Wizard of Oz" eagerily anticipated every December, this was before VCR's we got to see it once a year my all time favorite movie growing up I have every line memorized to this day.
-Leave it to Beaver Eric: nope "Captain Kangaroo" everyday got up early to watch him
-Sargent Bilko (sp?) I love Phil Silvers

#6 Three Things I regret

-For being so inpatient
-Not taking my girls fishing and hunting (got to some with Kaisa, not so much with the other girls)
-Not buying more property 20 years ago Eric: nope, I would have given more compliments to my kids growing up but am trying to change that

#7 Three Things that scare me

-Rats Eric: yeserree
-Scary Movies
-Sad things that can happen to my kids

#8 Three people who make me laugh

-Steve Martin
-That funny guy on the radio Scott got me into Eric: yup that would be Phil Hendrie
-All my family while Playing UNO with them Eric: more particularly Ross!

#9 Three things I love

- My family
-The Gospel
-The Book of Mormon Eric: yes but Moroni in particular
-Trees (and all plant life)
-My Geese

(Sorry, more than 3, but he loves all these so much, I had to put all them in! Could actually come up with so many more!)

#10 Three Things I hate

-Arrogant people
-People who stop their cars to allow people in while driving Eric: yes they think they are being courteous but what about the line of traffic behind and all the people there that are late. They are being courteous at someone else's expense. Now if it was Ann wanting to get in or one of you that would be an exception.
-when people drive on my newly planted lawn or plants Eric: I would tie this with scaring the geese away that on the fields

#11 Three things on my Desk

-My Book of Mormon
-A picture of Paige
-A pile of books a mile high

#12 Three things I'm doing right now

-Watching "Charlotte's Web" to see Aerlind's name and get ideas for my barn Eric Yes: I saw it Aerlind Flynn Janzen producer baby
-Scrolling through ebay, looking for historical relics and buys
-Eating popcorn, red licorice, and drinking either Tab or Coke Zero.


There, I've done my bit for blogging. Love reading everyone's blogs, they are so enjoyable! Had to do a little bit myself, thought this would be fun. Love to all family reading Dad's blog, and wonder how close I actually got to some of his 3 top things? It'll be fun to find out!

The Unprofitable Servant

Luke 17:5 "And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith...6. But which of you having a servant, plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? 8. And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird theyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? 9. Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. 10. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants, we have done that which was our duty to do."

I love these verses. I have wondered if the parable that the Savior next shared, was meant for the apostles not then, but for years later, when they would be all alone. All the apostles met a martyrs fate. I can see a discouraged Peter or James or any of the other twelve sitting by a fire on a lonely Roman road. As the embers dimmed he would remember what must have seemed like long ago when he heard the Savior say these words,

"But which of you, having a servant, plowing or feeding cattle will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat?"

He would remember all that the Savior had done, "plowing and feeding cattle," planting gospel seeds, establishing the church and blessing peoples lives. He would remember the close of the Saviors ministry- did he rest? No, "make ready wherewith I may sup and gird thyself and serve me..." He would remember how the Master Servant knelt before him, washed his feet at the final supper and broke bread at the last supper. Tears would roll down the apostle's cheek as he remembered the night of suffering by the Servant of all mankind at Gethsemene and the cross on Golgotha, "which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain , and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit- and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink-

Again he would remember the words spoken long ago,"9. Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. 10. So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do."

When men hire employees or "servants" it is to make a profit. No one wants to be an "unprofitable servant." But the Savior wanted the apostles and us to remember his atonement. When we make the atonement part of our life our faith will increase. There is no service that we can render, no work we can do, that will ever compensate for Christ's atonement on our behalf individually and collectively. Thus we are all "unprofitable servants" in a positive way.

King Bengamin said, " I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitables servants. And behold, all that he requres of you is to keep his commandments...therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you."

Have a great week! Don't trip on a conker Eric

This is for Shannon, sorry its a little long- The Little Red House- Craftsman Style House

There was a time in my life when I was quite into house styles. Ann and I very carefully studied our home and it is built quite accurately as a Georgian Home from the 1700's. My office which was built in 1886 is an Italianate, a victorian style. Certain style homes were built during specific periods of time. You are all probably familiar with "ranch style" homes which were popular during the 50's and 60's. Then there are homes that have no particular style. Its hard to peg new homes today. Not that they aren't great but the styles seem to get mixed up.



Anyway the Little Red House is what is called a "craftsman" style home. This style was popular in the early 1900's. Craftsman style homes were built of natural materials native to the area. Thus The little red house is sided with fir shingles. The eaves are wide. (this is the area where the roof overhangs the house) It has what are called knee braces on the roof line which are designed to look like a beam protruding from the roof. They serve no structural purpose but are a classic design feature of a craftsman style home. Craftsman homes have large porches. (we added a porch in the front several years ago) Double hung windows are common. The design is simple. The little red house was built as the caretakers cottage for the barn which was a prune dryer. A caretaker was necessary to man the wood fired dryer to dry the plums. The caretaker that live here was "Willy." Kind of like "Billy." There are not too many barns with a huge chimney. The red house was built when the barn was built around 1920. At one time Salem was the "Prune Capital" of the world. There are not too many of these old prune barns left which used to number in the hundreds around Salem. Ours is one of the best preserved. The workers would write their names and the years they worked above the dryer doors that are still there. Mrs. Vaughn who passed away last year, has her initials with her first boyfriend when she was 12 years old with a heart around. The Little Red House is also a haunted house (a nice haunted) but that is a blog for another day.





Projects for the summer are to remove the old dormer that we added when we moved into the house in 1986. Remove the old porch on the east side.(overlooking the garden) Reroof the house with wood shakes. I just planted a white climbing rose to crawl up the south side of the house. When it is done it will look like a little gingerbread house. The inside is like new.





Last year we cleaned out all the brush and cut down ugly trees around the house opening everything up. Derek and I brought in several tons or rock and built a raised wall around the south and east side to make the lawn level and surrounded it with minature roses to flow down over the stone wall and flowering strawberries. Yes Billy helped too. We used the tractor to bring in loads of great topsoil from our soil quarry down by the creek, in the forest close to Mrs. Vaughns. There is a bend in the creek hidden by the trees where we can get great loam.

Derek and I planted Prickly pear cactus on the bank along the road. It gets very hot and dry on that south facing bank and the cactus should do great. I have a variety of prickly pear cactus that would overrun the Willamette Valley if given a chance!





The big project this summer is to cap the drain pipes on the little pond the red house looks over and let the water drain over the top. In other words, turn it into a waterfall. I am very excited about this. When it is done, when you come around the corner you will see a nearly ten foot waterfall pouring from the pond into the creek. It will look very natural. The red house is really built on a beautiful spot the front overlooking the big pond and the geese, the east side the creek, garden and barn, the west side the hillside with the horses and trees and the back with the little pond and soon to be waterfall. Billy is seriously lobbying me to tear it down and build a hobbit hole there, but I don't think so.

"Kaisa's Jewels" by Sigrid

The biggest joy mom had during her last years were Scott & Kaisa. There was a gift store off of Commercial where they sold marked down costume jewelry and other children's toys.(for her grandkids) Mom would say she had to go in and check on what they had out periodically. But the way mom said it was typical of her delightful way of speaking. She would say "I have to go in and see about Kaisa's Jewels." She wanted to make sure that Kaisa had enough jewels, ha ha.

Red Horse chestnuts Obly, obly-onker

Obly, obly-onker
My best conker
Obly, obly O,
My best go.


I love Red Horsechestnut trees. I remember seeing them on the capital grounds when I was a boy. They have the most bright red blooms in the spring which you will get to see pretty soon. The nuts or "conkers" are spectacular. They are smooth and shiny and look like brown little agate or marble stones polished in a tumbling brook. Thus children in Great Britain would gather the shiny "conkers" and play a kind of marbles on a string and recite the little chant above before giving their best shot.

Anyway last fall I gathered some lovely Red Horsechestnut conkers from a tree I planted years ago and layered them in soil over the winter. I carefully dug them up a few weeks ago and to my delight they were all spliting open sending new little shoots. I gave Nate, Annelisa's friend a couple of conkers to take to his dad in Colorado last Thanksgiving. We will see how good an arborist he is or if he should stick to back surgery. This is one of the Red Horsechestnut trees starting to sprout. I have about a dozen or so. I will carefully raise them this year and plant them out next year or perhaps this fall. Can you imagine swinging in a grove of blooming Red Horsechestnuts? Wow!

"They Must Use Cascade"

This last weekend I found myself doing an unusual amount of dishes. Compared to many that is probably not a lot, but for me I found myself using the dishwasher maybe 3-4 times over a two day period. Usually its once a week. I reached under the sink and grabbed a bottle of "Cascade." If you don't know, Cascade dish detergent has been around awhile.

My mother Pearl Marie passed away early in life from lymphoma a type of cancer. She was 54. The only grandchild she really knew was Kaisa. Scott was three and Rebecca was just a newborn when she passed away. Mother loved Kaisa dearly. Kaisa was a great joy to my mother in her illness. Oh how she would have loved to have seen all her grandchildren and great grandchildren- you have no idea.

One weekend Kaisa was staying with Mom at the coast. Kaisa was always precocious. Mother and Kaisa were sitting at a nice restaurant in Lincoln City for lunch. Mom was with a friend and Kaisa as her "pal." Kaisa was probably all of four years old. Mother held up a piece of silverware and commented how bright and shiny it was. Mom said Kaisa then held up a fork examined it closely and said, "yes grandma, they must use Cascade." Mom would always chuckle when she told this story. Whenever I use Cascade I can see my little girl holding that fork up and spying it carefully. Whenever I buy dishwashing soap it is always Cascade.

The Missing Shingle, or Rescuing Rebecca

I will never forget the phone call years ago. I was at work. Mom was apparently gone. Becky called me "Daddee pleaze come home quick. The Piggee is trying to eat us daddee, the piggee is trying to eat us daddee." When we lived in the little red house and were new farmers we raised pigs for our own consumption. We mainly fed them left over table scraps. However with eight hungry kids scraps were sometimes few and far between. In fact one time the butcher told me that we had the leanest pork he had ever seen. Anyway getting back to the Piggee trying to eat Rebecca. I left the office and bought a sack of dog food. Dog Food works as a substitute if Pig feed is not readily avialable.

I drove up to the red house and saw a couple of little noses planted against the window staring outside, Rebecca, Ross and Annelisa. On the front porch, next to the window was a big black slender hungry pig. He was right in front of the door. He saw me, grunted, "oink oink," reached up and grabbed a shingle off the side of the house and began to crunch and chew the shingle down. Now that's a hungry pig! When he saw the sack of food he quickly followed me to the "pig pen" down below the barn. I repaired it again. I imagine it worked till he was real hungry again. The Shingle is still missing to this day and I can point right to it. I always laugh when I see the missing shingle. "Daddee pleaze come home quick. The piggee is trying to eat us daddy. Pleaze daddee the piggee is trying to eat us."

Easter Egg Hunters I

Egg Hunters on the prowl


Scott and Elijah "hanging out"


Mary I mean Gretchen shows off her loot

Before the Big Easter Egg Hunt

Grandpa says that we will never eat Goose for Easter

Just think aunt Annelisa used to use this very swing


Paige and Liam try the zip line


These tulips smell good


These are the shakes for the new roof for the little red house


I miss my slide


Paige says: "Have a nice Easter everyone and remember grandpa says no goose dinner for us!"

What we do is important

Ether 13:10 And that a New Jerusalem should be built upon this land, unto the remant of the seed of Joseph

There was once a father who lived in a remote mountain valley. Within this valley grew trees with the straitest grain and most beautiful wood in all the land. One day the father climbed the hillside to work next to his son who planted seedlings that grew into the magnificient trees. "I am tired father of trudging up and down these mountainsides and planting these seedlings. Most of them are dead the next year. Those that grow, grow so slowly that I will never see them very tall."

The father visited his second son who felled the mighty trees along the mountainside and hauled them to the mill in the valley. "Father why must I spend all my days cutting down these trees? My back is sore and my legs aches. My friends can do what they want. Why must I do this work?"

In the mountain valley the father visited his third son who worked in the mill. "Father it is loud and hot. This work is so tedious. Is there something else I can do?"

The next day the father took his sons to the top of the mountain in whose shadow the valley lay. He carried a telescope and carefully focused it. He invited each of his sons to look. As they gazed they saw in a land far away a beautiful city in the center of which was a beautiful temple with spires rising high into the sky and other temples rising from the ground. "What is it father?" they exclaimed. "It is a city built for our God. The wood from our trees is building that city and those temples."

The sons went down from the mountain top to their work. They retained a vision of that magnificient city and temple in the far away city. When the first son planted his seedlings he said with joy, "I plant trees for temples to our God." When the second son harvested the tall trees he declared with gladness in his heart, "The trees will be used to build the city and temples to the Lord." And the third son cut and sanded the wood with love in heart knowing what he did was for the glory of God.