Fly fishing on the Provo River

B. is completely "hooked" on fly fishing now. He has actually caught a couple of fish, and is raring to go fishing every chance he gets.

I'm up for it too...

So last Sunday we drove 30 minutes from our house to the Provo River.
I am still in amazement that we live so close to so many beautiful places!

Just before we headed out B. got clobbered by doors that were stacked against the wall in the garage falling down. I thought he would decide against the trip...I was wrong. The deep scrape and bruises were dabbed with an anti-bacterial medication, he popped a pain med, and then jumped into the car.

There are now a few bloody smears on the front seat of my new car.
That makes my car look tougher. More like an outdoor woman's car.
Yeah. I like that...

It was a great day for fly fishing. Every few yards up and down the river there were anglers wading in, or casting from the shoreline.

A brisk breeze cooled us against the summery warmth, and an occasional rain drop or two escaped the heavy clouds overhead.

Perfect weather, in my opinion.

Overhead swallows were swooping about. I counted over thirty at one point.
(If you enlarge the previous pictures, you will see swallows in those pictures too.)



Below, clouds of grasshoppers flittered ahead of our every step. At first I thought they were butterflies, as their wings were broad and fluttery.

Not a really "buttery" kind of day, but I did manage to photograph a skipper.

This one was sipping nectar from a clover blossom. Did I mention the air was filled with clover scent? Pink, red and white clover bloomed around the edge of the river.

Not a lot of flowers though. I thought this looked like wild mustard, but it wasn't.

I took my turn at angling.

I did get a bite, and a fight before I lost the fish. Yes Dad, I did remember to set the hook before I played it in. It was a pretty tiny hook, and we were seeing pretty big fish being lifted out by others around us.

I turned the rod back to over to B. and went exploring. The side stream lets were making such a lovely babbling sound.

(His waders arrived a few days after this trip. Here he was wading in the icy water bare-legged, claiming it made his scraped and bruised leg feel much, much better....)

Seriously...isn't this restful beauty?

The rock stacking trend up north got a try down here at one point as I sat by the river. I decided my stack should look like a be-hatted woman. Or maybe a hippo. Hat, head and torso, with leaves serving as feather trim.

Back to wandering around.

An equestrian clicked by on her spotted pony. It seemed a natural part of the scenery.

Every few moments the light changed on the surrounding hills as the clouds hid and re-revealed the sun.

There is a scientific name for this effect of streaked light. Maybe I'll remember to look it up later. As a child I always thought of such light as God and Angels peeking down.

Instead of flowers, there was an abundance of interesting grasses to photograph.

(Oh gee, now I guess I will also need to get a grass identification book....)

Somehow even this prickly set of buds looked lovely to me. Are they cockle burrs, or a form of thistle? There were quite a few amethyst thistles in bloom, and thistle weed fluff floating about as well.

The distant bridge over the river carries car traffic. We really are not that far from civilization at all.

It was getting late...B. casted just a few more times before we headed back to our car.

Next to our car was a lovely field of billowing grasses, in early fall tones that made me want to take some time to paint. I find the click of my camera is letting me "hold that thought" nicely against time constraints. Someday I will have so many images to chose from should I decide to wield my paintbrushes again.

Well, we once again left the stream without any fish in the creel. We did see a couple of fish caught by others. Fly fishing is an art form, and requires much study to learn to correctly read the current insect hatch, how to cast each kind of fly, and how to read the river.

If I was really hungry for food, I probably wouldn't be fly fishing. I probably be wetting a line and cheese ball covered hook for bait.

Speaking of cheese....

Cheeto!

(We stopped by and visited him right after fishing. He now weighs three pounds. Most of that weight is fluff and purr. Can't get enough of my grandkitty!)

I don't need a keeper, thank you. Now back off!

In 2004.... John Kerry insisted that his faith was "why I fight against poverty. That's why I fight to clean up the environment and protect this Earth. That's why I fight for equality and justice. All of those things come out of that fundamental teaching and belief of faith."

But he also said that, when it came to abortion, "What is an article of faith for me is not something that I can legislate on somebody who doesn't share that article of faith."

The statements cannot be reconciled. By Kerry's own admission, he seeks to legislate his articles of faith on people on nearly every issue under the sun — except abortion.

Suddenly, on that issue alone, he is an adamantine secularist.

Speaking during the campaign at an evangelical church in South Carolina, he (Obama) said, "I am confident that we can create a kingdom right here on Earth."

He supported Bush's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives and kept the agency when he took over, albeit with a slight name change... His (obama) social agenda....was deeply informed by the injunction that we "are our brother's keeper, our sister's keeper."

Leaving aside the fact that the Bible nowhere says we should be our brother's keeper (the phrase appears once — when Cain is trying to dodge a murder rap from G-d) or my own view that the government should never see itself as a keeper of anyone but incarcerated criminals (my dictionary says keepers are prison guards and zoo wardens), I think Obama's approach is a welcome change of pace.

Politics has always been a contest of values, and religion remains the chief source of those values. Our political discourse has long been cheapened by the canard that only conservatives try to use the state to impose a religiously informed moral vision, while liberals are guided by science, reason and logic as well as some secular conception of decency and compassion. No party has a monopoly on such resources, and it's about time we all recognized that.

From an article written by Jonas Goldberg.
from: http://www.jewishworldreview.com/cols/jonah082609.php3?printer_friendly

Chicago Milliners: Swoon....

Someday...somehow...I am GOING to a Chicago Millinery Alliance event!

Smiles and Dreams from the Farmer

Last Tuesday I got some new "bling"....a tooth pulled and an implant installed instead.

Lucky me. And I had just gotten a medical spending account set up the week before.

In one dentist visit, I emptied the account before I had deposited a dime into it.

The tooth was put into a necklace so I could take it home and try to get the tooth fairy to comp me.

No luck with that!

Having someone implant bone and drill into my jaw= ouch.

And the pain meds=zonk out.

So I took the rest of the day off, put on my jammies and headed out to the deck where I sprawled out on our former apartment IKEA sofa. Having a real couch on the deck is so soothing. We both find ourselves catnapping out there all the time!

The funny thing: I fell asleep and awoke with a humming bird whirling inches from my face. I think he though I was a new kind of bird feeder or something.

A relaxing view...

Soft clouds to watch slipped by...

The Japanese maple forest is still in summer green. I can't wait to see the color change on the tiny trees come fall.

The gardener showed up and tended the bonsai.

I remember when the apple trees were covered with soft pink blossoms.
I took pictures last spring of two branches that over hung our fence.

The branches now hold small blushing apples.

I decided I should investigate...see if they might be ready to be picked. They aren't...not yet. Still hard and sour. Wish I knew when they usually ripen.

As long as I was rambling about the garden, might as well check the vine yard too.

It wasn't too long ago that the grape vine had tight buds....

Now they are turning purple.

Are they ripe?

Some are sweet, some are tart, and all of them have three seeds. I'm hoping they will swell a bit more. Otherwise I think I will just have to squish them for juice. Right now, there are too many seeds to deal with for a tiny bit of grape. There are lots of purple bunches...any one want to join me for a grape stomping party, bare foot ala "I Love Lucy" style?

There are a few vines that are producing seedless grapes. I'm thinking next year there is going to a few more of those vines planted.

Besides the apples and grapes there were a few other things to look at too.

The other pink blossomed tree now has red berries. Jeff says they are called Spanish Olive trees. I can't find any evidence that this is the correct name, so I think the berries will be left as a treat for the birds this winter.

(Anyone out there know what this tree is really called?)

There are hints of fall...one Japanese maple is bleeding some red into its leaves.

I'm hoping for a few more weeks of summer. The tomatoes are just getting started!

If it suddenly turns cold....well, maybe you'll hear me saying "Fried green tomatoes anyone?"

As a farm family, I don't think we are going to be making much of a splash with our crops.

We like sitting on the deck more than we like doing farm chores.

We like watching the birds at the feeders, the clouds overhead, and taking naps on a warm summer afternoons after dental work has been done in the morning.

I feel pretty good now. The bone has to heal until November then a permanent crown will be implanted.

I suppose that will be a tad uncomfortable too. But by then the deck will probably be covered with snow, and the crops will all be harvested.

On that day, I plan to curl up on the inside couch, and enjoy a long nap before a warm fire in the living room.

And maybe enjoy a slice of warm apple pie, from the apples on the tree, and perhaps a bit of grape jam on toast.

Nice to have something to look froward too, isn't it?

I thought the POTUS was the Servant of the People....

You ARE paying attention, aren't you?

Check out these headlines!

from: http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0809/We_are_Gods_partners_in_matters_of_life_and_death.html?showall
'We are God's partners in matters of life and death'
A reader points out that President Obama's call with the rabbis today — as recorded in Rabbi Jack Moline's and other clerics' Twitter feeds — freights health care reform with a great deal of religious meaning, and veers into the blend of policy and faith that outraged liberals in the last administration.
"We are God's partners in matters of life and death," Obama said, according to Moline (paging Sarah Palin...), quoting from the Rosh Hashanah prayer that says that in the holiday period, it is decided "who shall live and who shall die."
The president ended the call by wishing the rabbis "shanah tovah," or happy new year — in reference to the High Holidays (that should be spelled "Holy Days"! jill) a month from now.

I'm enjoying the comments made in response to outrageous statement that "we are God's partners in matters of Life and Death" made by the man who has declared "We are not a Christian nation" and who would not attend National Day of Prayer as he felt is interfered with separation of Church and State

My favorite comments so far:

"Like hell we are!" signed "God".

"Ooooo...somebody's going to hell!"

"Problem is, Mr. Obama thinks he is the senior partner."

"Newsflash: God doesn't need a partner....but thanks for exalting yourself, Obama!"

"Now that is compromise we can believe in.. Obama is actually willing to share the spotlight with GOD!?!?!?"

"We aren't God's partners you arrogant twit. We are dust specks. You are a narcissistic dust speck."

"Sorry Barack, this is a family-owned business." - God

"I believe, Mr. President, with all due respect, sir, that God's partners in life and death are the God, the Father, His Son, and the Holy Spirit. He doesn't have any vacancies right now due to the recession!!!!!"

"The more our President speaks, the more wary I become. Last time I checked, God wasn't looking for volunteers to help Him make decisions."

"He has that president thingy down. Promotion time!"

"If an ordinary citizen went about seriously proclaiming himself to be God’s partner, we would consider having him committed to a mental institution for observation."

"Partners???? I thought God worked for him. Did God get a promotion?"

"Oh man. I wouldn't want to stand near him in a thunder storm."

"Don't assume the god he speaks of partnering with is the one of the Bible. There are many gods, but one I AM."

Let's see... When asked by Rick Warren when life begins, Obama said that he could not answer that because it was "above his pay grade". Now he claims "We are God's partners in matters of life and death." Next thing you know he will dissolve the partnership and say that matters of life and death are none of God's business!

"Just so you know, the act of "attributing partners to God", is one of the most serious sins in Islam. This quote will be shouted from the minbar all across the Muslim world tomorrow at Friday prayers. "

"This is waaaayyyy above Mr. Obama's pay grade. "

Step down, Barry...step down NOW!

Before and After: The Hat Room

Before we get into the "before" and "after" shots...I have to show the adorable California quail families that have been dropping by every morning and evening the last couple of weeks.

Here's a Daddy Quail, in the bonsai garden area. Isn't he handsome?

And here are the two California Quail families. Two males, two females, two babies per family. One is out of the picture.

California quail are not native to Utah. Fourteen pairs were introduced to the area back in 1860something. They are still very much California-ish though. No self respecting Utah family has only two kids!

OK...enough of that. On to the Before and After Shots of the Hat Room.

This will be the last B&A shot for awhile...only the laundry room and the cold storage room remain to be done, and we are in no hurry to deal with those issues just yet.

Before: I didn't even bother to include this room in the first tour of the house back on Dec. 31st. It was just a tiny downstairs bedroom wedged between the laundry room and the bathroom. Typically, it was painted a vivid color, and originally had bright olive green carpet. Oh, and the paint was lifting off the plaster because the former owners had created a planter on the other side of the exterior wall without bothering to seal the wall first.

Jeeze people. Get a clue!

The room was Gail's guest room during my mid Feb. meltdown season. It was the last room that got painted and I was in a fetal position around the paint cans by the time we started to roll the little room. I had no inspiration left to choose a color; bland beige was the best we could come up with.

Then a lot of junk got tossed in the poor room. The "junk" (everything that I just couldn't deal with placing in the house or getting rid of) later got moved to the famous former Bob Marley room, which now looks like a garage sale following a hurricane, put on by a crazy lady.

(Yes, eventually I will post those B&A pictures too...)

All of this is to let you know what went before with this room. This past weekend I finally got up the energy to create a livable space in the room for myself.

It was done to celebrate a huge event:

The one year anniversary of our move to Salt Lake City!!!!!!!!!

Can you believe it has already been a year?

What a year it has been!

I re-read the last posts from Houston, where a year ago I was packing two duffle bags, in a town where it was in the high 90's with almost 90% humidity. This past weekend in SLC it was in the mid 70's with humidity in the low teens.

I was glad to come to Salt Lake City. I loved it before and I love it even more now. But the year was very difficult.

* We basically moving four times in one year (to Jeff's condo, to an apartment, to a room in our basement, and finally into our whole house...)

* both B. and I starting new jobs

*I had to look at 70+ (mostly horrific) properties while awaiting the sale of our house,

*We wondered if our Houston house even was standing after Hurricane Ike blew through and knocked out power to that city for a week.

*I lived with just the contents of two duffle bags, a backpack full of computer stuff and my purse for over a month.

*Our son become engaged and married

*I had to oversee the packing of our Houston house in one weekend just before Christmas.

*There were a LOT of decisions to be made for the remodel of the house we finally decided on(paint, sinks, faucets, doors, windows, carpet...it went on and on....)

*I had no girlfriend nearby to hang out with (my real estate agent was my best bet for venting!)

*We worked at finding new friends at church, only to discover our small group had three pregnant young women, and I was the only other woman (sigh...they all had little ones already. Busy mommies!)

* My husband's brother suddenly had cancer. Very serious cancer.

*I developed a ganglion cyst on my forefinger, which required surgery and bone scraping. Try living without your right forefinger for a while...try just turning the key on your car!

I could go on and on. Yes, I hit bottom around March. Yet even in my darkest moments I still looked out to Salt Lake City and thought "wow. this place is amazing. I absolutely love this place."

Are you still reading this?

Amazing.

Well...here it is, a year of testing and trials later...I feel sassy and happy again.

And I am SO ready to have a hat room back!

AFTER:

Not quite as lovely of shelving as my hat room had in Houston. With the low ceiling in this room, I just made do with whatever didn't fit elsewhere in our house!

I used hanging sweater hangers to create a "built in" effect in the closet, and removed the sliding doors for full access. Very cost effective!

The upside is this make do shelving is that 98% of my hats are now on display, while in Houston I never had more than a dozen out at a time.

No more fussing with hat boxes...this tiny room serves as a walk-in closet just for hats!

People at work are getting used to seeing me in a hat and are starting to warm up to the idea. My dear real estate agent Luann came over and "played" hats with me on Saturday. Several people at church and work want to come see the collection too. I think it is almost time for another "Sip 'n See" hat party!

I was told no one in SLC wears hats. I think that is about to change.

So how many hats do I have?

You will just have to come visit and count them for yourself. I will only own up to having a few more than a hundred. (With my fingers crossed as I type this...)

Bonus material: A batch of No-Knead cinnamon rolls that I whipped up for fun.

Even that simple recipe became a challenge to me.

We now live at just a tad under 5000 feet above sea level.

That is what is known as "high altitude" and it messes with all the baking and cooking recipes.

I'm learning how to cook all over again, in my new kitchen where I am still trying to remember where I put things.

Yes, so much in my life has changed.

Change is both hard....and good.

It stretches you and makes you toughen up.

It makes you grow.

Then, eventually, life goes on again.

Yellow!

The supermarket two blocks down the way has the cutest displays!

Utah "Salt and Pepper" corn was stacked high, and on sale: 10 ears for 98 cents!

The store knew this was going to be a door buster sale and were well prepared for additional business.

Look closely: They also displayed everything else you would need for a big corn on the cob feast.

Napkins, big pots for boiling corn, butter, salt and pepper, corn "stickers", aluminum foil so if you wanted to throw the corn on the grill, grills...

What else could you possibly need???

Well, dental floss of course! They really DID think of everything!

They even set up a Shuckin' Station!

Isn't "salt and pepper" corn pretty?

Jeff and Rachel invited us to dinner. We brought the corn and the bread...they grew the tomatoes for the salad.

Oh yum!

Sunny summer yellow goodness.

More yellow: I enjoyed the yellow roses on my dining table, and am experimenting with candles and my Wheeling gold china tea service collection from the 1920's. The china was decorated with 24 K gold. I wonder how much they would be worth if they were sold for their gold instead old tea pots?

Outside we are having the yellow breasted black headed grosbeaks visiting our bird feeders.

The yellow sunshine of summer is glowing everywhere!

Not to brag....well, actually, yeah...I'm bragging big time!

What proud mama wouldn't want to brag when her son and daughter-in-law are featured in one of the biggest bridal magazines west of the Mississippi?

Jeff and Rachel's engagement story and pictures were featured on Utah Bride and Groom's blog buzz on Monday.
Hope you can see the pictures, otherwise head over to the link above!

(And now you can understand why I rarely showed pictures of my kids when they were little. People would look, and then get sad when they realized that I had the most beautiful children ever....and their kids were, well, just kinda cute. Don't hit me! I'm kidding!)

Aug 10, 2009
09:41 AMBridal Buzz
Engagement Photos: Rachel & Jeffrey
By Tessa Woolf
Aug 10, 2009 - 09:41 AM
I love Rachel and Jeffrey's engagement photos shot out and about in downtown Salt Lake City by Pam and Ritchie of Ritrato Photography. (The shot at Blue Iguana is one of my faves—and it's a great restaurant, too!) Enjoy the photos and the couple's sweet proposal story.
The Couple: Jeffrey Spriggs & Rachel Burton
The Proposal: "Earlier in the week Jeff suggested that we get Mexican food at our favorite fish taco joint on Friday night," says Rachel. "We'd gone there on our first dinner date, so I started to suspect that he was going to propose."
"When I called him after work I was planning to hit the gym, but he suggested we go watch the sunset and drink champagne above the Capitol for our 'Monthiversary.' We'd been to the overlook before on one of our first dates and it has the best view of the lake, valley and sunset. I scrapped the gym and hustled home from work to get dressed for our date."
"Once Jeff picked me up, we headed up to an overlook to watch the sunset. After we cheers'd to seven months together he told me he had a present for me and to close my eyes. When I opened them he was on one knee (in the mud) with a gorgeous engagement ring and he asked 'Rachel, will you do me the honor of spending the rest of your life with me?' I said 'Of course! I can't wait to be your wife!' Then we headed down to Lone Star Taqueria for a dinner of the best fish tacos in the valley!"
The Wedding: was held May 2, 2009. The couple were married at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Sonoma, California, followed by a reception at The Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa. "I am from Santa Rosa, California (wine country), and I wanted my Utah friends to see where I grew up!" says Rachel. A Utah reception at the groom's parents' home in Olympus Cove in Salt Lake City was also held on June 13, 2009.

Two, three months....

Caring Candle for
Mark Spriggs

Cancer
Get a Caring Candle

Last February, around Valentine's Day we learned that my brother-in-law Mark had cancer. He under went surgery, and a large mass was removed from his abdomen, along with the several organs that the cancer had invaded.

The doctor admitted that some cancer was still left behind, in places that could not be breached by the knife. As soon as Mark was considered well enough to endure the next challenge, he began a very heavy chemotherapy regime.

Last Wednesday he had a MRI to determine if the chemo was having a good effect. On Mark's 51st birthday he was in the hospital and was soon to learn that the cancer had returned. A mass had formed again, just as large as before, and it is not in any way operable.

They discharged him to return to his wife of five years and his two young adult aged step-children, with the advice to get his affairs in order; he may only have two or three months to live.

Mark is a believer. He came to faith in the saving grace of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ around eight years ago. He then married a Christian woman and became active in a vibrant church, where he played worship music...he who before had rocked on the drums in clubs and videos. I've heard he has written faith music, and that he plays mostly bass guitar at church. We never got to see him in action in that capacity, but judging from the notes left by church members on his Caring Bridge link, he apparently has been much admired and his music much enjoyed.

The number of friends from his band days, and work places (he himself had worked as a radiology therapist...he worked with so many who had battle with cancer...) have left caring messages for Mark that have been quite comforting to all of us. As typical with siblings with different life paths and interests, there had been little overlap between our lives. It has been good to know his life has been full of friend and lot of fun.

Most of all, it is good to know that while parting is hard for all of us to consider at this time, (he is too young!) the parting will hold his healing. He will be fine, forever, and his only longing will be to find us all with him in heaven one day.

For now, we pray for a miracle, of course. Barring that gift, we pray for ease of pain, sorrow, and all the feelings that go with departing. We pray for that for all of us. For all of us here on earth who know that death is never timely, and dread the inevitable physical outcome for each of us.

The body is weak, and fails...the soul takes flight...and is an eternal creation. Like during the birth of a child, we as a family are labouring in our spirit for the end of Mark's season of life here on earth, and for the release of life, like a birth, into heaven.

Please pray for Mark's mom and dad, his brother and sister, nieces and nephews, wife and step children. Pray that through the dark days ahead they will still have a vision of light, a light of knowing that there IS a good eternal future ahead for Mark.

Houses With Criminal Pasts Sickens Owners: MUST READ ARTICLE!

WARNING! HOUSES WITH CRIMINAL PASTS SICKEN OWNERS.

While this post is not cheery, I think the article below important enough to risk being a bit of a Monday "downer."

When I first saw the article I wondered how you could get sick by buying a home a criminal had lived in.

I had NO idea. This is especially serious when you consider how many young families try to get their first home via a "deal" such as auction or foreclosure.

IMHO, the following hair raising article should be posted everywhere.

Spread the word to everyone you meet who is shopping for a house right now.

July 14, 2009
Illnesses Afflict Homes With a Criminal Past
By SHAILA DEWAN and ROBBIE BROWN
WINCHESTER, Tenn. — The spacious home where the newly wed Rhonda and Jason Holt began their family in 2005 was plagued by mysterious illnesses. The Holts’ three babies were ghostlike and listless, with breathing problems that called for respirators, repeated trips to the emergency room and, for the middle child, Anna, the heaviest dose of steroids a toddler can take.
Ms. Holt, a nurse, developed migraines. She and her husband, a factory worker, had kidney ailments.
It was not until February, more than five years after they moved in, that the couple discovered the root of their troubles: their house, across the road from a cornfield in this town some 70 miles south of Nashville, was contaminated with high levels of methamphetamine left by the previous occupant, who had been dragged from the attic by the police.
The Holts’ next realization was almost as devastating: it was up to them to spend the $30,000 or more that cleanup would require.
With meth lab seizures on the rise nationally for the first time since 2003, similar cases are playing out in several states, drawing attention to the problem of meth contamination, which can permeate drywall, carpets, insulation and air ducts, causing respiratory ailments and other health problems.
Federal data on meth lab seizures suggest that there are tens of thousands of contaminated residences in the United States. The victims include low-income elderly people whose homes are surreptitiously used by relatives or in-laws to make meth, and landlords whose tenants leave them with a toxic mess.
Some states have tried to fix the problem by requiring cleanup and, at the time of sale, disclosure of the house’s history. But the high cost of cleaning — $5,000 to $100,000, depending on the size of the home, the stringency of the requirements and the degree of contamination — has left hundreds of properties vacant and quarantined, particularly in Western and Southern states afflicted with meth use.
“The meth lab home problem is only going to grow,” said Dawn Turner, who started a Web site, http://www.methlabhomes.com/, after her son lost thousands of dollars when he bought a foreclosed home in Sweetwater, Tenn., that turned out to be contaminated. Because less is known about the history of foreclosed houses, Ms. Turner said, “as foreclosures rise, so will the number of new meth lab home owners.”
Meth contamination can bring financial ruin to families like that of Francisca Rodriguez. The family dog began having seizures nine days after the Rodriguezes moved into their home in Grapevine, Tex., near Dallas, and their 6-year-old son developed a breathing problem similar to asthma, said Ms. Rodriguez, 35, a stay-at-home mother of three.
After learning from neighbors that the three-bedroom ranch-style home had been a known “drug house,” the family had it tested. The air ducts had meth levels more than 100 times higher than the most commonly cited limit beyond which cleanup is typically required.
The former owner had marked “no” on a disclosure form asking whether the house had ever been a meth lab, Ms. Rodriguez said. But because he is now in prison for meth possession, among other things, the Rodriguezes decided there was nothing to gain by suing him. They moved out, throwing away most of their possessions because they could not be cleaned, and are letting the house go into foreclosure.
“It makes you crazy,” Ms. Rodriguez said. “Our credit is ruined, we won’t be able to buy another house, somebody exposed my kids to meth, and my dog died.”
Federal statistics show that the number of clandestine meth labs discovered in the United States rose by 14 percent last year, to 6,783, and has continued to increase, in part because of a crackdown on meth manufacturers in Mexico and in part because of the spread of a new, easier meth-making method known as “shake and bake.”
There are no national standards governing meth contamination. Congress ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to publish cleanup guidelines by the end of 2008, but the agency is still reviewing a draft version. Without standards, professional cleaners say, it is easy to bungle a job that often requires gutting and repeated washing.
About 20 states have passed laws requiring meth contamination cleanup, and they use widely varied standards. Virtually all the laws hold the property owner financially responsible; Colorado appears to be the only state that allots federal grant money to help innocent property owners faced with unexpected cleanup jobs.
In other states, like Georgia, landlords and other real estate owners have fought a proposed cleanup law.
After the Holts bought their house here, Tennessee passed such a law. But since 2005, only 81 of 303 homes placed under a resulting quarantine have been cleaned, according to the state, which has one of the few registries tracking meth lab addresses. The law applies only if the police find a working meth lab at the house, and Jerry Hood, a lawyer and cleanup contractor hired by the Holts for the decontamination work, said many houses in the county had escaped the legislation.
The health effects of meth contamination are frequently difficult to prove, and research is scant. But John W. Martyny, a meth expert at the National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, said living in a former meth lab made children more likely to develop learning disabilities and caused long-term respiratory and skin problems.
Even brief exposure can have severe effects, Dr. Martyny said. A 2007 study by the Denver center found that more than 70 percent of law enforcement officials who had inspected meth labs subsequently reported health problems.
To Ms. Holt’s horror, inspectors found high concentrations of meth on her kitchen countertops, where she sterilized bottles, prepared baby food and doled out snacks.
“We had no idea that we were starting a family in a meth house,” she said. “We bought a house that eventually was going to sentence our family to death.”
When the family left the house, moving in with Mr. Holt’s parents, their health problems largely subsided. The children no longer needed medication to breathe. The migraines and the kidney ailments vanished.
But the heartaches continued. Ms. Holt has been working two jobs to earn money to pay for her house’s remediation, which has proceeded in fits and starts with donations from church fund-raisers and local businesses. And Anna, 2, had a relapse and had to return briefly to the hospital.
“We don’t know what it’s going to be in the future,” Ms. Holt said, standing in the barren, unfinished structure that was once her dream home and reflecting on her children. “This meth contamination is all their immune systems have ever known.”