Slogan Winner

Est. 1950

Thanks to those that gave input! I can't wait to see all the fun things that can be done with this slogan. :)

Make your mark...

DON'T FORGET
TO VOTE!!

THANK YOU!!

It's Official

Greta called this morning at 5am and officially reserved Tenny Ranch for the Reunion next summer! Thank you Greta for getting up so early just to make sure we were the first ones to contact them when registration opened.

A quick reminder

1 month from today the first half of your family reunion payment is due to Cindy. I can't believe October is already upon us! I hope you've all been saving your pennies!

Say Cheese!

We are in need of a current individual photo of EACH person in the family. Please email your favorite individual photo to Heather no later than January 1st 2010 (if you are pregnant please send a photo of your bambino whenever they arrive!).

Speak Up

In order for this reunion to be as successful as everyone would like, we need to make sure that any and all kinks are worked out quickly and efficiently. Please be sure to give your opinion on items that are posted on this blog or email Heather so she can add a post if there is a concern. One of the hardest things about planning anything is communication, because of that this blog was created to ensure that everyone was on the same page.

Obviously there may be some items where "executive" or "quick" decisions must be made for the good of the group as a whole, but everyone's input is important, so speak up! Tell us what your thoughts are in regards to the reunion and what would make it more enjoyable for you.

Tentative Schedule at a Glance

Tuesday, July 20th : Out of state family starts arriving, Mesquite Grove Aquatic Center, session in the Mesa Temple at 4:00pm, Dinner for adults and teens after temple session.

Wednesday, July 21st: carpool to Heber mid-morning, lunch, dinner & other activities

Thursday, July 22nd: breakfast, lunch, dinner & other activities

Friday, July 23rd: breakfast, lunch, dinner & activities in Snowflake

Saturday, July 24th: breakfast, lunch, dinner & activities in Snowflake,fireworks show

Sunday, July 25th: breakfast, break camp / say goodbye, church in Heber starts at 9:00am for those who would like to attend.

Update & Tips

It has been asked if children were a lower price than adults for the reunion. Cindy called and talked to Tenny Ranch and determined that the price could be lowered a bit, but they informed her that they had to raise the price of the lodging $1.00 per person per day due to the abnormally high price for propane.

Here is the new pricing as of September 1st 2009. This may still change a little as we get closer to the February date depending on various factors that will be put in place by that time.

Price per person ages 4 and up $64.00 ($16.00 a day)
Price per person ages 3 and under $48.00 ($12.00 a day)

So the amount due by October per adult is $32.00 and the price due per child 3 and under is $24.00. This seems very manageable even in these tough economic times.

Here are some great ideas on little things that can be done to save a few bucks here and there to help you save for the first payment!

• Find a local thrift bakery to purchase bread, often times it can be as inexpensive as .50 cents a loaf.
• Drink less soda throughout the week, it adds up fast! Especially at a restaurant, they are upwards of $2.00... you can get a 2 liter for half that typically.
• Skip out on the newest CD, Podcast or movie download for your IPOD.
• Brown bag it a couple of times more a week.
• Instead of going to a sit down restaurant on date night where you have to pay a tip, head to a quick service restaurant instead. They often times bring the food to your table but no tip is required.
  
• Rent a movie from Redbox instead of purchasing pricey movie tickets.
• Have a girls night and paint each others toes instead of paying to go to a nail salon where it costs around $25.00 on the low side for a pedicure... my sisters, Mom & I did this last weekend, it was great... and FREE!
• Make your own ice cream bar at home, purchase ice cream, candy & toppings on sale and watch the pennies add up, I'm sure everyone's seen the new Walmart commercial advertising this very thing, they claim it will save over $200.00 a year verses going to a Cold Stone type establishment.
• Carpool... and it's environmentally friendly.
• Buy in bulk. If you don't have a membership to Costco or Sams club see about going with a friend or family member.
  
• Use coupons when eating out more- there are some coupon books that have buy one get one free coupons for meals, it's a great way to conserve, who doesn't like free food?!
• Do new creative activities with your kids at home instead of going out with them.
  
• Be creative with your exercise habits to save on paying for a gym membership. There are typically Mom's groups that have regular exercise outings, WII Fit offers some great training and even those old fashion work out videos you can check out at the Library.
• You can also check out DVD's from your local library. They are completly free!
• Use will power.
• Create your own 100 calorie packs for snacks by buying in bulk and dividing it up into baggies.
• If you like to shop, don't go into stores. I myself love to go to the craft store, but I know that any time I go I'll want to get a new inspiration to work with, so I just don't go. Or if I HAVE to get something, I take my husband so I won't get sucked into "looking"!
• Skip out on going to the scrapbook store for a crop night, just do one from home and have everyone bring their tools and ideas to share.

Hopefully these are a few things that help you and get you thinking about ways to be a little more frugal. We really would love to have the entire family together at our reunions and know that money is tight, for most of us so hopefully we can all support each other and work together to make our next reunion a success!

Tents & RV's

If anyone would like to stay in tents during the reunion, please leave a comment to this post so that a committee can be put together to arrange getting the right amount reserved for the reunion.

As stated in a previous post, there are 4 hook-ups for RV's/Campers. They will be assigned by first come first serve. Please leave a comment to this post if you would like a spot reserved for you.

Sleeping Arrangements

Here is what was sent about the sleeping arrangements:

At the site there are the main lodge with sleeping areas with mattresses, and 4 SMALL cabins that will sleep a total of 5 people. In them there is a double bed, a twin above it and enough area on the floor for one double air mattress. The cabin has a ceiling fan with a light and ONE double electric plug. These 4 small cabins will be reserved for the "OLD" couples in the family. (Grandpa and his kids and spouses). There are 4 or 5 electric outlets for camping trailers and or RV's for those who may want to bring them.

In the main lodge there are two different sleeping areas-one will fit about 15 people comfortably, we thought perhaps teenagers or young adults may want that space, it's open to the main floor of the lodge below, and the other space is upstairs and enclosed and will sleep probably around 25-30 people.

We did check out a couple of hotel type accommodations in the area but they were pretty pricey and have to be reserved NOW if anyone prefers that. Please feel free to contact Greta about alternative hotel/motel accommodations.

Your vote counts

We are trying to decide on a theme/slogan for the reunion. On the left you'll see a poll of some of the ideas that have been thought about. Please vote on your favorite(s) and if you've got some good ideas please share a comment quickly to this post so we can add them to the poll! We would love everyone's input into a theme/slogan!

Pioneer Days

Activity: Pioneer Days
Date: Friday July 23rd - Saturday July 24th 2010
Open to: Everyone


Below is a link to follow the activities in Snowflake during Pioneer Days. This is the same time frame we will be there next year for the reunion. As you'll see there are a lot of various activities that I think everyone would find interesting. We have a lot of friends that go up for this weekend every year and rave about how much fun it is, so get ready to party!

Pioneer Days Link - Click on the Link that says Pioneer Traditions

Lodging in Heber, AZ

These are the photos Dale Cronin provided for us (thanks!) so we could see the area we'll be having the reunion at. I think there are still some lodging details to come but we wanted to get these photos up so you'll have a general idea of the area!

Food for thought

I LOVE this idea and can't wait to see the finished product! I think adding personal experiences is also a wonderful way to preserve our family history!

Here is what Anna Cronin said:

One of the things we would like to do is put together a Cronin Family Cookbook and have it finished by the reunion.

We are asking ALL OF YOU to contribute by sending in your favorite recipes. If you have a thought to share about it, please include that...such as "this was one of mom's favorite" or "dad (or husband, kids, etc) loved this" In other words, add something personal to it. Funny stories that happened when that food was served would also be great. We want this to not just be about food, but about special or fun memories.

PLEASE send at least two recipes to Cassie Cronin Romney at cassiejae908@yahoo.com.
She has volunteered to put it together for us.


Don't put it off, send your great family recipe today!

Step right up

We are looking for volunteers to help with various tasks. If there is something you are good at or enjoy doing, please leave a comment below and give us an idea of how we can best use your talents! More details to follow about specifics.

For example:

"I love to help out with entertaining kids with crafts, story time or sing along".

"I am the craft queen, I've got some great ideas."

"You need a fire started, I'm your man."

"I am a great historian, I would love to put a family journal together."

Money Money Money MON-NEY

Alright, this is everyone's favorite part, money! I put a condensed version of this on the side bar so it will be easy for all to see. Here is what was sent concerning the money involved in this reunion:

THE ESTIMATED COST WILL BE $60.00 PER PERSON FOR WED-SAT. THIS MAY VARY A LITTLE BUT HOPEFULLY NOT MUCH AS WE CONTINUE TO GUESSTIMATE COSTS OF FOOD. THIS WILL INCLUDE THE LODGE AND MEALS FROM WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY AT NOON.

ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY WE WILL BE HAVING ACTIVITIES IN SNOWFLAKE AND THOSE WHO WANT TO MAY WANT TO PURCHASE FOOD THERE. WE WILL HAVE FOOD PROVIDED FOR THOSE WHO DON'T WANT THAT OPTION.

PLEASE UNDERSTAND IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT WE HAVE THE MONEY IN ADVANCE TO BUY NEEDED ITEMS AND ON SALE TO KEEP THE COSTS DOWN FOR EVERYONE.

HOWEVER, ONCE YOU PAY WE MAY NOT BE ABLE TO RETURN THE MONEY PAID TO YOU IF YOU SHOULD CHANGE YOUR MIND AND NOT ATTEND THE REUNION. THIS IS BECAUSE THE MONEY MAY HAVE ALREADY BEEN SPENT TO BUY NEEDED ITEMS.

If there are any questions regarding the financial commitments, please contact Cindy or Stan as they will make the final decisions in these matters.

Welcome to the valley of the sun

Activity: Arrive in Phoenix
Date: Monday July 19th- Wednesday July 21st 2010
Open to: Everyone

We will begin the family reunion in the Phoenix valley and then head up to Heber together as a family on Wednesday mid-morning. We will be staying at Tenny Ranch in Heber through Saturday.

If you are traveling from out of town, you will be able to stay with family members in town until we go up to Heber. Whoever you stay with will provide meals for you on Tuesday and Wednesday morning to help limit your expenses.

Gather round the table

Activity: Dinner after the temple
Date: Tuesday July 20th 2010
Open to: Adults and Teens

Let's enjoy a great meal together and set the tone for a fantastic week during the reunion! Dinner location to be decided at a later date.

We love to see the temple

Activity: Session in the Mesa Temple
Date: Tuesday July 20th 2010
Open to: Endowed family members

After spending the day playing with the kids, leave them with a sitter and spend time with the adults! Babysitters will be pre-arranged for the kiddos so you don't have to stress about that detail for once. Our goal is to attend the 4:00 Session and then head to dinner after. The temple is about 30 minutes away from where most of the family lives, so you'll need to leave by around 2:45-3:00 in the afternoon to get there and get changed in time for the session. We'd also like to have each person take in a family name, so be working on your genealogy!

splish splash

Activity: Water fun at the Mesquite Groves Aquatic Center in Chandler
Date: Tuesday July 20th 2010
Open to: Everyone

Put on your bathing suits and throw some towels in your bag and meet everyone at the pool! Mesquite Groves is a family favorite, you won't be disappointed!

There are 2 full size water slides, a lazy river, a lap pool, water basketball, a splash pad, plenty of open deck for those wanting to work on their tans, diving boards, vortex pool, family play pool with zero depth entry, toddler slides, and even some grassy areas!

They do have limited concessions if you're needing a snack on sight. Although, you are allowed to bring in your own snacks.


ADMISSION FEES:

Children (2-17 years) $.75
Adult (18-54 years) $2
Senior (55 years & older) $1

The prices are great! The facility is new and clean. I linked their website below so you can check out all the details and see photos.


Link to the Aquatic Centers Website

Chop Chop

Activity: Meal Preparation
Date: Monday July 19th 2010
Open to: All Adults and Teenagers

On July 19th we will have a "preparation day" from 9:00 a.m until we're done at Cindy's house in Mesa, AZ. The goal is to get as much of the meal and miscellaneous preparations done as possible.

the first of many

welcome! this is a blog that has been set up primarily to promote & distribute information about our next cronin family reunion next july. once the reunion has taken place, it is our hope as a family that we can keep this blog going to record our family history of events. currently i, heather stutts miner (daughter of lester g. stutts & cynthia ileen cronin) have been given the assignment to upkeep this blog. once it's established it would be great to add everyone in the family as an author to the blog so that we can all post photos, tell stories & invite one another to family gatherings. for now, we'll keep it to a small group so that a uniform format is used & information doesn't go missing accidentally!

we've got a wonderful family & we all know how very important family history is. in fact, president james e faust said, "Begin to unlock the knowledge of who you really are by learning more about your forebears." it is my personal hope that by having this important piece of history we may know more about each other, about our family past & present as well as have a record for those who are to come. i hope that we can share our experiences not only about mortal life, but also about our spiritual journey in this life so that the generations to come have a guide & can be taught by our experiences.