2012 Top 10

Do you like to choose a word for the upcoming year?  Some of my friends do this and I think it helps them focus and find direction.  I have never chosen a yearly word, but as 2012 drew to a close, one word kept popping into my mind.  Even as I chose a Christmas card, I knew I had to find one that included JOY!  In September I wrote about being surprised by joy, but I feel like I have more to say.  As a recap of the year, I want to share some of my favorite moments of being surprised by joy.  Many of these events were not surprises, yet I wasn't expecting the abundance of joy they brought into my life.

10. Cleaning out my parents' home -  Exhausting, frustrating and emotionally painful, especially as a pregnant grandma! Of course it was good to help out my dad and it was a blessing to spend so much time with Jenny, but the joy came from some of the treasures I found in the house.  I came across a sweet, comforting letter that my mom had written, but never given to me fifteen years earlier.  I also brought home boxes of photographs and family history and it has truly been a joy to sort and organize many years of family photos.

9. Monday mornings - This has never been my favorite time of the week, but this year it has been the time we receive emails from Elder Aaron.  At times, his emails cause me to worry, but Monday mornings always bring the joy of knowing an email is on the way!

8. New girls in town -  No, not  babies, I am referring to some awesome women:
     Sweet Molly became my daughter when she married Ryan near the end of 2009.  It was a stressful time when they got married, but since then we have had many good times together.  During 2012 she was a comfort and help to me and a few days ago it really struck me.  She is such a blessing and brings such joy to my life!
     Next is my dad's sister Cheryl.  A few years ago my dad made contact with his half-siblings whom he hadn't seen in many years.  I met his brother and sister for the first time at my mom's funeral.  Cheryl has been so sweet, sending lovely gifts when Lavender was born and reaching out through cards and emails.
     My dad's wife Carolyn was not in an easy position as she joined the family just a year after my mom passed away.  But she has been so gracious and loving to everyone.  She won over the kids with her colorful rice krispie treats and has worked so hard to help and befriend the rest of us.  She has a great sense of humor and it is a joy to have her in the family.

7. Time with my family - Lots of it this year!
April -  All three of my brothers flew out for Lavender's blessing at Easter.
June - My brother David visited us with his girlfriend Annie.
July - My brothers Jason and Scott and their families came and we had an impromptu family reunion.
December - David came back with (now fiance) Annie, and we had another family get-together.  Thankfully Jenny's family and my dad and Carolyn joined us too.  My brothers have married such fantastic women.  It is a joy to be together with my family!

6. Time with John's family - John's parents have both passed away, but he is blessed to have two amazing sisters.  We love to visit them! We spent a week in Utah this summer.  We celebrated the 4th of July together and had so much fun with the whole extended family.

5. Marianne's trip to Ecuador - It brought me such joy to see my girl plan and prepare to make her dream of working in an orphanage a reality!

4. Family Trip Back East - Earlier this year, I told John that I wanted to take Marianne and Evan to to Washington DC since they were so young when we went in 2003.  He didn't think it would be possible this year, but then he found out he would be working at a convention in NYC in October.  John really knows how to travel frugally and he managed to stretch airline miles and hotel points to cover our trip so that we were able to visit DC, VA, PA and NY for 16 days.  We worried that it would be difficult traveling with a baby, but it was an exciting, joyful trip for the 5 of us!

3. Grandbabies - You might think that with a baby of my own, I wouldn't be as excited about grandchildren. Wrong!  I can't wait to see those sweet little girls.  I love hearing their joyful little voices when they come in the house or grabbing those cute little hands as they reach out to me.

2. Lavender Jane -  If you've read my blog at all, you know the joy this sweet baby girl has brought to our home.  I was excited for her to be born, but I was also prepared for reality.  Some babies are colicky, others have medical problems or disabilities (especially when born to older mothers).  But instead of worry or pain, Lavender has brought only joy.  For the first three months of her life, I was constantly surrounded by a powerful peace and joy that she brought with her from heaven.  Later, she began to share her sweet enthusiasm with everyone around her and it has been a joyous ride!

1. Twenty Five Years With the Man I Love - John and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary in May. He continues to amaze me with his loving patience.  It brings me such joy to see him play with our beautiful granddaughters and daughter.

Twenty Five

Today is our 25th wedding anniversary! 

 You can read the story of how we met HERE.  

We wish we were in Hawaii celebrating, but that will have to wait for another year.  Meanwhile, here are a few things I love about my wonderful husband.

1. John loves to travel and plan vacations.

We had been married a year or so when John mentioned that he would love to visit Japan.  He loved living there while serving as a missionary, but now it seemed unlikely that he would be able to return.  Travel was so expensive and John doubted we would ever be able to afford it.  I gave him a pep talk and told him he needed to believe in his dreams and make it happen!

Sure enough, we did visit Japan several years later.  Since then we have traveled many places together:  Oregon, Arizona, Mexico, Chicago, New Orleans, Washington D.C., Florida, Pennsylvania, New York, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Canada, Puerto Rico, Italy, France, New Zealand and Australia.  He finds every discount possible and keeps travel costs very low. 

I am grateful for the time we have spent together while traveling and the many wonderful places we have been able to explore.  We have so many wonderful memories.

2.  John is athletic and active.

I have always been uncoordinated and a bit of a couch potato.  John has always been an athlete.  Growing up, he loved golf and basketball.  I am still not an athlete, but John is good at getting me up and out of the house.  He has always enjoyed taking our family on walks. He takes us hiking or biking or weightlifting or to the park to play ball or frisbee.  Twenty five years later I love to walk and I walk more miles each week than he does!

I am grateful that all of our children are more coordinated than me!  They all enjoy being outside and active. Hopefully these healthy habits will continue for generations.

3. John is a good provider for our family.

John is a wise steward with our money.  He is careful not to overextend or overspend.  Despite economic downturns, declining real estate values, unemployment and unexpected expenses, we have always had everything we need and many extras as well.   See #1!

He has always been a hard worker and he is also very frugal.  Together these qualities have allowed me to stay home with our babies and to then homeschool our children.  Now we're back to staying home with the baby!  In my heart of hearts I have always been a mother.  I am grateful to have been able to devote my full attention to mothering.

4.  John is very patient and loving.

One of my favorite stories about John is how he spend weeks teaching me to play frisbee.  And yes, it really did take weeks!  When we were first married we went to the park every Saturday and a few weeknights.  John patiently taught me how to throw and catch a frisbee.  He didn't get frustrated with my wild throws.  It took a lot of practice and he was a patient teacher.

When I get stressed out or angry he is patient with me and helps me calm down.  He has always been a loving father and he is a wonderful grandpa.  Brianne's favorite person in our house is "Papa John."  She is disappointed if he isn't here when she comes over.  Hearing her yell "Papa" so enthusiastically is one of the cutest things I've ever heard!

I am grateful to have been married to such a patient and loving man for 25 years!

Just for fun, here we are in Hawaii 25 years ago.

Gotta love those shorts.

His were extra short and mine were extra long!

Happy Anniversary John! 

 I love you babe!

Wild Weekend #2

Okay, maybe our weekend wasn't exactly wild, but it was very busy with some important events.  Saturday morning we had over 30 people at our house for the blessing of Leighton Anne.

She was given a beautiful blessing by her father.

Here is her cute family!

She was fortunate to have many family members there for this special day.

  She even had two great-great grandparents there!

Here she is with her father, grandma (yes that's me!), great grandpa (my dad) and great-great grandma (my mom's mom)

After the blessing and lunch, we headed to the temple for the 

sealing of Dad and Carolyn.

Here they are with my grandma and Carolyn's mom.

My dad says it is a picture with his two mother-in-laws.

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of them at the wedding or reception, but it was a lovely day.  Here is a picture of Carolyn's bridal bouquet as proof.

One Year

Today marks one year since my mom died.  I wish I could say I have healed from the loss, but I haven't.  It still makes me sad that she isn't here to celebrate with us.  She never got to hold her granddaughter Brooke or her great granddaughter Leighton. She wasn't here for Ryan & Molly's sealing.  She didn't come to the temple with us when Aaron received his endowment and she won't be there for his farewell.  She loved being with her family more than anything in the world.  I know she is probably with us in spirit, but it just isn't the same. 

Tonight we went to the cemetery and decorated her grave with new silk flowers.  It was dark and rainy by the time we got everyone together.  We had to use the light from our phones to see what we were doing.  We huddled together under umbrellas trying to keep dry, but instead we kept bumping and dripping water on each other. I was pretty grouchy, but I knew Mom would think it was funny, so I laughed.
 
Next we went to In N Out for dinner.  I spent most of the time watching Brianne dip her french fries in ketchup.  She was very particular about her dipping and Aaron obliged her by creating a ketchup "machine."  He moved the cup of ketchup back and forth at her command, complete with mechanical noises.  Mom would have loved seeing Brianne so in charge and Aaron so playful.  I laughed again.

I am glad I was able to laugh with my family, but at home by myself, I cried.  I miss you Mom!

My last picture with Mom. Me, Marianne, Mom and Grandma--four generations. 

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