By the chimney, with care

This is the very first Christmas stocking that I made. It was the Christmas of 1982, and I made it from a kit I bought at King's in Blackfoot to use for Adam's 2nd Christmas. (We had a "Baby's First Christmas" stocking which was used for all of the babies.)

When Veronica was born, I looked for a kit to make a stocking for her, and the one I found had a blue background with Santa and his reindeer, which I decided looked more like a boy, and this first one I made looked more like a little girl with the dolly and teddy bear. So after I finished stocking number 2, I switched the name "Adam" off of the first stocking, and used glitter to make it say "Veronica." For each child, I found more stocking kits, always felt, always sequins. I sometimes think I should make new stockings for everyone, but there are so many memories in these little felt stockings.

This is the first year since it was made that this particular stocking won't be filled by Santa. Veronica and Kyle are spending Christmas in Kentucky, and I'm excited and happy for them to get to spend Christmas with Kyle's family this year. But I was just a little melancholy tonight as I was putting out all of the stockings. I couldn't find them for the longest time, then finally tonight I remembered where I had put them for safe keeping a year ago...in Veronica's closet.

Boxing Emily

As parents, Kerry and I have done a lot of crazy things we never could have dreamed up before we had children. We've also have said a lot of crazy things (don't hit your sister in the head with a helicopter!) It's been so fun being parents for nearly 3 decades, 6 children - 3 boys and 3 girls, we've pretty much had the full experience. While there have been plenty of days when life just goes by and things go as planned, those are not the days you blog about I guess. This past day was not one of those well-planned days. It was one of the other kind. It involves a large black box.

For at least 2 months we have known we needed to come up with a box, a cheerleading box for Emily to stand on at football games. What we haven't known were the specifications of this box, and there seemed to be no way to find out. The other freshman cheerleaders had older sisters who were also cheerleaders, so they had boxes to copy. We just kept waiting for official word from the cheerleading advisor on how to proceed, but no official word was forthcoming. So we did what we do best, we procrastinated finding out this info until the last minute, though I did prod Emily a few times to try to find out from the other cheerleaders, and I myself had tried to call her advisor, who had recently resigned, but she didn't return my call.

Labor Day weekend might have been a good time to build a box.


The Tuesday after Labor Day, she came home from school and said, "18x30." That was the word she got from the other cheerleaders when she finally asked them. Great, we will build that box now, in time for Thursday afternoon, we had 48 hours.

Wednesday Kerry cut out the wood at his Dad's house during his lunch hour. We didn't have time to assemble it that evening because it was his sister's retirement party in Idaho Falls, so we were going to do that just as soon as we got back. We left home about 5 pm, and ended up staying at the party til about 9, helping carry flowers, gifts, and dozens of helium balloons home from the Red Lion. We stopped at Home Depot, Emily extricating herself from the back seat completely full of balloons, me from the front seat full of roses, and found some glue to hold the box together, and a drill. We were a little ways away from Home Depot, when Kerry decided he wanted the other drill afterall, so we went back. It's getting late, and it was after 10 pm when we got home. BUT we needed to run over and drop some things off at his parent's house, like the flowers, and things for his sister who was having a cast put on her foot the next day, and by the way, we had loaned the truck to Thomas and Caley when we saw them at the Retirement party, so they could move this weekend.

So, finally we started building the box, 10:30 pm on the night before it was to be used. We stood in the dark, in the garage/drive way all three of us, til midnight, holding sides of this wood together with glue until it finally formed a very large, very heavy box. Kerry used the new drill to screw the sides to the 2x4's he had cut to stabilize it, and it was a sturdy thing of beauty. I then attempted to use the 94 cent black spray paint, 2 cans, I had bought at Walmart to try and make it black, but guess what? Cheap paint, not turning very black, still looks kind of wood colored. Went to bed, about 1:30 am, got up at about 6:30 to spray on another coat. Still not super black, but a little blacker.

There wasn't going to be time to paint on her name or cute symbols, so at school I hurriedly used the Cricut and some white vinyl I got late last night to cut out the letters to spell her name, and one cute banner, but no time to do anything else, and barely time to do that. It was a very busy day trying to score all sorts of tests and get all sorts of numbers and reports to all sorts of teachers very quickly. Kerry was working from home so that he could pick Emily up, (early-release day for the fair) and take her back (cheerleaders get ready at 3:15) and also buy more paint (Krylon this time, better coverage, quicker drying, costs $3, next time get that.)

I came home just in time to slap the vinyl letters on, by now it's raining pretty hard, and we need to get the box to the field before the start of the game. Oh yeah, no truck! Will it fit in the trunk? Not really, back seat? Nope. Trunk it is, we use a tie-down that is really a net hammock, because we are hurrying and that's all we can find that is large enough to go around the trunk and the box hanging from it.

Drive across town, through the rain, past all of the State Fair traffic, hoping the big black box won't fall out of the trunk every time we go over a bump or railroad tracks, the lid of the trunk clunking loudly with every bump in the road. Hoping nobody we know sees us, Kerry driving while on his I-phone having a meeting with people in California because these are still his work hours, trying to keep it on "mute", nearly succeeding....just as we pull into the parking lot with our ungainly load, 15 minutes before the start of the game, relieved that we have made it in the nick of time...Emily texts us "we aren't using boxes today."

A cure for yo-yo dieting

I think this was one of the first videos I ever searched for on YouTube. I remembered watching it as a child, back in the days before VCRs when you got one shot in your whole lifetime (so we thought) to see anything, 2 if you caught the summer re-run. I think this is worth 3000 calories at least, if one could keep up with the choreography, and also do it in a jumpsuit.

They were merely freshmen

Greet the Morning

If you are lucky, like me, you might have a daughter like Emily who tapes a message to the ceiling over your bed inviting you to "Greet the Morning!"

A Perfect World

A few years ago, Oprah had this on her "favorite things" show. I hardly ever watch Oprah, but I did that day, and I was persuaded to try this lotion. It really is perfect. I don't buy it often, because it's expensive, and when I do, I kind of hoard it and use it very sparingly. Sometimes when I'm having a bad day I remember that I have some of this in my bathroom, and then everything is all better. (They have another kind...Ginger Souffle, which is possibly even better than A Perfect World, but like the copper highlights Amanda puts in my hair seasonally, it's better in fall and winter.)

Social Commentary

20-17

A recent glance at the newspaper from the city to the south enlightened me on the current state of birth statistics in the area. In a two week period at one particular hospital, there were 37 babies born. 20 of them were born to single or unmarried parents, and 17 to married couples.

Bountiful Basket

I finally remembered to get online at the right time on Monday night to order a Bountiful Basket. Since this was my first time participating in this popular food co-op, I decided to count up what I got. (I didn't know I was supposed to bring a box to take the stuff home in, oops, but I won't be a first-timer next time!) Broccoli (2 bunches), cantaloupe, 3 onions, a bunch of kale, 5 tomatoes, 7 ears of corn, 12 peppers, 2 zucchini, 2 plantains, 3 mangoes, 15 plums, 10 peaches, and a pint of blueberries. All of the fruits and veggies are super huge and wonderful looking. It all goes along very well with our plan of eating more healthfully, we've been doing pretty well for 2 weeks now, Kerry and I (and by default, Steven and Emily too!)

Knee

Another first - general anesthesia. I'm getting my knee scoped later today. No food after midnight, clear liquids til 7:30 a.m. We just dropped Emily off in Idaho Falls to see the midnight showing of Eclipse with Caley, and now I should sleep and be ready for what is to come. While my knee recuperates, I can start on my first college class. What a cool summer this is.

Your Mom Goes to College

I guess my ecclesiastical endorsement came through. It's all provisional though, as long as I can pass Student Development 100 by November 1st. Bishop Twiggs asked if he really had to go over the dress and grooming standards with me. President Wankier said he hopes I meet a really nice boy at college.

But I am going to finish my Bachelor's degree at BYU, because, frankly, I'm getting tired of all of the "Finish What You Started" postcards I keep getting from them! They wore me down. It's been about 29 years since I vowed I would finish my degree when babies grew up and Kerry was finished with college. Time has a way of passing quickly, and my baby is 14, Kerry has been gainfully employed for at least 26 years, and I'm not getting any younger. So I might as well. I'm excited. I have 8 years to finish it, but I don't think it will take that long.

When we lived at Wymount Terrace with all of the other groovy young couples, we were very typical - one baby, husband finishing a degree, wife staying home with the baby. It was not common then for a young mother to finish college, at that point you just let your husband finish, and you put it on hold for later or never.

So with this Bachelor of General Studies degree, I could choose from 8 areas of emphasis. Most of them did not tempt me in the least. It came down to psychology or writing. I was going to do psychology because it sounds more impressive, and also interesting, but I never took a psych class before and it's not really a degree in Psychology, it's a General Studies Degree, no matter what. For writing, I can count all of my foreign language, communications, and English credits from 1978, of which I had quite a few, so that made the most sense. Maybe I will write better blog posts one day.

oh and

Your Mom and Dad have been married 30 years. You know who else is having a 30th anniversary this year? The Cheesecake Factory. We went to lunch there on Saturday, and wanted to bring Emily a piece of cheesecake home because she loves it so. I was looking on the cheesecake menu for something she might like (chocolate and with no nuts), and voila, there it was: 30th Anniversary Chocolate Cake Cheesecake





We also went through a session at the Salt Lake Temple, my first time to be inside, and another first - the Rodizio Grill. Of course, what 30th anniversary trip would be complete without a trip to IKEA, where I got this cool sugar shaker. It's not exactly pearls, but I like it.

Happy Graduation Day Steven!

Graduation Announcements by WiddlyTinks.com

A Quiet Weekend

Just a few things going on from Friday to Sunday, instead of so many. District Tennis, Cheerleader tryouts, 8th grade dance, Election training, Father-son campout golf tournament, Emily's 14th birthday, Senior Prom, Stake Conference, Steven ordained an Elder. The sun is shining, and I finally planted a flower outside that I was given at school for teacher appreciation week. It's just one little flower, but it's the first Saturday in a long time that I've had time to do such a thing. Emily is napping, the boys are golfing, Steven is on his day-date, Caley is over at the Porter house doing Prom Hair, and the world is very quiet right now.

P.S. Emily made the cheerleading team, Adam surprised us showing up from Utah to golf with his dad and Thomas, and Steven just left for his limo ride with his prom date, Emily (not his sister.)

I love to see the

Temple. I'm going there someday...tomorrow! With beautiful bride-to-be Marisa. I like lists, here's one:

Adam, Idaho Falls Temple, July 2000 prior to his mission to Carlsbad
Thomas, Idaho Falls Temple, February 2005 prior to his mission to Budapest
Caley, Ogden Temple, July 2007 prior to her marriage to Thomas
Veronica, Idaho Falls Temple, October 2008 prior to her marriage to Kyle
Marisa, Provo Temple, April 2010 prior to her marriage to Doug

And in 2 months it will be the 30th anniversary of

Me, Cardston Temple, June 1980 prior to my marriage to Kerry.

My whole family, Cardston Temple, April 1966, to be sealed to my parents and siblings. There were Lego's in the nursery, and angels, as I recall.

Jellybean

It's hard to choose a new layout, when there are so many! But when I saw this one, I knew I just had to have it. Lynne always called me Ronna Maureenie Jelly Beanie. So there you go, and it's a week til Easter too.

Thanks to Caley and Emily for talking me through the new blogger dashboard.

Did you know that Emily has already (as of yesterday) set out the Easter Baskets with names on them for everyone she believes will be here on Easter, including her brother in law to be Doug (Happy birthday today!)Marisa, Steven, and Caley and Thomas. She figures since they will be down for Marisa's bridal shower, they will have to stop by.

So jellybeans for everyone! We have baskets for Adam, Veronica & Kyle, we'll hang onto those until they get here later in April. Because April is a great month:

Two graduations - Provo and Rexburg, two birthdays - Steven's 18th and Caley's 23rd, one wedding, one bridal shower...holy guacamole...it's going to be a fun month!

Keeping Sheep

Keeping Sheep
Lynne Perry Christofferson

I have a little flock of sheep, and they are mine to tend and keep,
And I must guard them every day for little sheep when left alone will lose their way.
So many voices say to me “A sheepfold is no place to be. Your time in there is dull and slow, and lambs leave very little room for you to grow.”
Oh if I ever start to stray, deceived by thoughts of greener pastures, Remind me Lord that keeping sheep will lead to happier ever afters.

Oh surely there will come a day when all the lambs have left my side and I am free to roam about and go exploring other meadows green and wide. Yet something whispers in my heart that when my sheep have left this pen I’ll long to stroke their little heads, to draw them close to me and have them young again.

So while they are still in my care, I pray that I will clearly see these little lambs within my fold are tender gifts a loving Father has given me.

Sounds of Sunday

I played this song a couple of weeks ago to accompany Debbie Peterson in Sacrament meeting. I hadn't heard it for a long time, it's really a sweet song. Today in church I found out that our neighbor Sharon Thulin passed away last night. Kerry often mowed their field behind our backyard. She was a nice lady, who always called me "Kid" and was very complimentary about anything we did, even riding our bikes as a family past her house. She will be missed.

30 years ago tonight...

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Kerry wrote me a song, and played it for me on his guitar, and then he proposed to me. This took place at my apartment, which was then Reams, now "The Colony" in Provo. And so it seemed logical that we should call our parents and let them know the good news...even though it was somewhere in the 11 pm to midnight range. We called the Parks first, since they were in a later time zone, then we called the Rankins. And they had never met Kerry before. Goodness, what were we thinking?

All's well that ends well, and 30 years later, I can still remember the song which started "Dear Ronna, here's a valentine I wrote it just for you..."

Things are different now...Marisa and Doug just got engaged but we've already met and spent time with Doug here and in St. George, already have seen lots of photos as we've been facebook friends for months. With cell phones and the internet, people's parents need never be a stranger to their daughter's new fiancee ever again!

I'm excited for another wedding, another chance to go to the Temple with a child of mine, and another glimpse of heaven. Congratulations to Marisa and Doug, thanks for not calling us at midnight (although we would usually be awake as tonight with 3 of Emily's friends here for a midnight french fry-fest Monday Holiday sleepover.)

Temperatures

Louisville 21
Provo 19
Blackfoot 0
Rexburg -15