Your Mom Has a Blog

Twelve Parks of Christmas

2011-12-28T16:28:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2011

This one isn't awkward, it's perfect! Perfect attendance at Christmas this year. Finishing out 2011 with the 11 people I love most in the world. Today we put five of those people on airplanes and I miss them, and the boy who will be leaving shortly on a mission for 2 years I will miss, and the couple who will be moving to Colorado next month will also be missed, as is the one who lives in Utah all the time. Thanks everyone for coming home and filling it up with joy and laughter and love.

Eleven Eleven Eleven (Pipers Piping)

2011-12-23T23:39:00.000-08:00

A very snowy outdoor live nativity 2008

So sad that baby Cora and her weary parents did not make it here tonight, but glad we will see them tomorrow and hope they can get some sleep tonight. I was looking forward to holding the baby while they got to sleep a little longer than they've been able to lately. In the other room, kids are playing card games while that little girl sings the song from Polar Express about Christmas coming to town. There's a pack 'n play set up in Emily's room, all ready to go.

Ten of Twelve

2011-12-22T15:22:00.000-08:00

Santa 1984 - 1st Christmas,
Motola home, Murray, Utah

It's hard for me to separate Dad and Santa in my memory, Santa has always been my Dad. Or in this case, Veronica's grandpa.

Nine Great Days

2011-12-21T13:30:00.000-08:00

Great!

I don't think I ever got to meet any of my great grandparents, so this photo with Great Grandma Nelson isn't really awkward, it's just great.

Eight Days of Christmas Photos

2011-12-20T19:00:00.000-08:00

The year of braces and those ornaments with paint swirled inside

I also like that you can see the Santa Hat that Janna made hanging on the wall.

Swans a swimming

2011-12-20T12:00:00.000-08:00

Atari. And, the kitchen sink. 1986

Sixth day

2011-12-20T00:00:00.000-08:00

P is for Park and waPello Christmas Program night '95

On the 5th day of Christmas

2011-12-19T22:02:00.000-08:00

who is taller?
2006

I missed a couple of days, I should never try to do a post-a-day thing.

4 Calling Birds

2011-12-16T19:11:00.000-08:00

Awkward Aunt Ronna

The Christmas of '79. Before I was an awkward mother, I was an awkward aunt.
I brought BYU shirts home for my 4 nieces and nephews and yet none of them ever attended BYU. Awkward! For extra fun, this is a polaroid picture, and someone must have been telling us all to say something, but Sarah ever the model just smiled sweetly and did not take the "cheese" bait. Good job Sarah!

Three French Hens

2011-12-15T22:02:00.000-08:00

the Star

As promised, a photo with Emily too. She joined right into the awkwardness with sandals, socks and short pants.

the 2nd day of Christmas

2011-12-14T21:26:00.000-08:00

2 matching ruffle neck cousin shirts

12 Days of (slightly awkward) Family Christmas Photos

2011-12-13T19:29:00.000-08:00

The Five New Ski Hats of Christmas 1994

This Christmas...

2011-12-11T14:09:00.001-08:00

This Christmas is going to be groovy!

Baby Mine

2011-11-29T21:45:00.001-08:00

12 hours old Veronica

2 days old Cora

4 weeks ago when I held my granddaughter Cora for the first time, she looked very familiar to me, like I had seen that sweet little baby face somewhere before. I was excited to find Veronica's baby book tonight, so I could see what my heart was trying to remember these past few weeks.

Little Bitty

2011-11-02T09:26:00.000-07:00

That's what her nurse was calling her last night when she gave her the first bath and hair washing. It was pretty sweet.

Powder Blue With Feathers

2011-10-27T20:23:00.000-07:00

35 years ago I wore

a dress that was powder blue

with feathers

when Lynne got married in October

in Salt Lake City.

I was 16.

That dress is old and has lost a few feathers hanging in the closet at Kidd Island Bay

Janna found it for me.

Emily wore it for me.

And now I'm ready to be a grandma.

In 16 more years maybe my granddaughter can wear this dress

for Halloween.

The grass was so green...

2011-10-22T17:14:00.000-07:00

I don't remember if Adam was safe or if he was out.

Weird

2011-09-20T05:33:00.000-07:00

I'm at a weird age. The age of Weird Al Yankovic. We'll be the same age as of my birthday this week, for about a month. This was my birthday present, a fun concert with close seats in a small venue. I laughed quite a lot. And bonus...it was the same night as the BYU/Utah game, which I was initially sad to make Kerry miss watching but in the end, I probably saved him from a stroke.

Hello, Handsome. Goodbye, San Diego

2011-08-12T09:42:00.000-07:00

This is the elevator to the parking garage - Steven was standing in front of this poster advertising Hyatt's $35 haircuts.

Its been a fun, luxurious 6 nights in this hotel, but I guess it's time to go home now. School, marching band, work - life awaits. We spent our last night going to the San Diego Temple and the Cheesecake Factory. It's been fun spending time with Marisa and Doug in their beautiful part of the world. They have been excellent tour guides & hosts. The last time I was in San Diego was probably the Holiday Bowl in 1979.

Sandy Eggo

2011-08-08T10:07:00.000-07:00

Vacation time for Steven, Emily and I - business trip time for Kerry. So far we have driven across the hot desert, had lunch in the McDonald's in Barstow that is a train car, strolled around Seaport Village, sung along with Marisa playing the organ in Church on Sunday (her debut), and gone swimming with the Haycock's. Oh and this lovely free hotel room with a view of ...the other side of the hotel, but a little bit of the ocean too.

March 1, 1993

2011-08-04T21:51:00.000-07:00

(One time for FHE we all wrote in our family journal. Kerry just found that journal in a box.)

Veronica Anne, 3rd grade
Today we didn't have any school because the teachers had inservice or something. We got to go rollerskating, too. They guy who owned the rollerskating rink somehow knew there was no school today. So that's mostly what we did today
In three days is my birthday. Today is Aunt Peggy's birthday.
Steven's being pretty funny right now. A minute ago, he was crawling along, and then he just fell flat on his face. We all started laughing. He saw that we were laughing, so he started to just crawl along, and fall on his face on purpose. It was funny! Then, mom gave him a marker to draw on a piece of paper. But he tried to eat it.
Jennifer Strobel just called to ask if I could come home from school tomorrow. Mom said yes, and I told her I would need a note to give to the bus driver. Then she said, "Well, I guess we shouldn't write "Hail to the Bus Driver" on it. (over) ------------>
Veronica Anne, 3rd grade, (continued)
I guess that's all for now. Oh, wait. Me and Marisa are going to trade bedrooms with the boys. But dad said we had to clean out our rooms first.
Okay. Now I'm definately finished.
Well that's what happened today. THE END

(Thomas 1st grade)
Today I haited it I almost got blined playing blined mans bluff. Poor Tom Tom got the cold got a stay home from school got Goosey Coff. Thomas
You guys can you brake all of my bones I anet like school? I love this ya guys This is fun ha ha. I was just playing peekaboo With Steve.

(Adam 6th grade)
Today we didn't have to go to school for a teacher inservice day. We went skating at 1:00. I'm lots better than the first time I skated, a few years ago. Now I can even skate better than Kevin Cook.
A few weeks ago I got some new Bladerunner in-line skates. It took a couple days before I got to use them. While skating, Kevin and his friend Travis Kay told me that I wasn't supposed to use a black brake. Later, I looked around and found a power ratchet and some tool and used them at the same time to get the back wheel off the right skate. After I got that off, the brake and the contraption it slides into came out of the skate. Today I used them and since they're so light, I can go faster and even jump and do "360's!"
Yesterday, while eating some really badly burnt microwave popcorn, one of my teeth fell out. I thought it was a "granny" or unpopped kernel and about swallowed it. Then I felt my soft gums where it came out and screamed my head off! Mom asked me if I ate a "hideous little creature" in my popcorn. I showed her my tooth, (which had a filling in it) and then she said "was it already loose?"
Right now, Dad's having a myocardial infarction with the Phantom of the Opera cd. He's standing by it bobbing his head and dancing. Now hes's filling the atmosphere with his rendition of "Music of the Night." Can you say air pollution?
Steven's been acting silly lately. Earlier tonight, he was crawling and slipped and we all laughed. Ever since, that's all he's been doing.
Baseball starts pretty soon. Today, me and Justin went to All-American Sports after his paper route because we saw huge banners that said "SALE" I checked out some mitts and noticed the interesting bat configuration on the ground. They were in swirls, one next to the other. They came up a few feet off the ground.
Basketball just officially iended for me. Our record was 5-3, but if you take away the points other teams got off of bad calls, we were 7-1.
I think I might get my first A-. In health, I missed a test thanks to Mrs. Parker, who just HAD to take us on a stupid, boring field trip to the hospital. I never have got a chance to make up the test. I probably will tomorrow, after school, if I can.
That's all I can think of right now. AP

Little Red Book

2011-06-30T22:35:00.000-07:00

Notice that it's not April Fool's day or anything, this is really what I do now in the church gym with a bunch of Relief Society sisters who are all older than me. We are getting pretty good at some of the line dances by now, so that someone jokingly said we should perform somewhere, and the Bishop's wife said she thought we should do a flash mob at the next enrichment meeting. We're learning the dances from a senior sister who goes to Arizona each year, where apparently the senior citizen snowbirds all spend the winter line dancing. I've learned like 12 different dances by now, and if you look them up by name on youtube, they are the exact same as what I've learned. Here's what we rocked today:

Praise to the Man

2011-06-26T09:58:00.000-07:00

As Primary chorister, I have been trying to teach the kids "Praise to the Man" since May. Well, it was the song for May, but I was gone for 2 of the weeks in May, and we also had Stake Conference, so for it being the longest, hardest song of the year, it just didn't get the attention it needed. We've been learning the 4th Article of Faith song in June, and that's pretty easy, since it is just the words to the actual 4th Article of Faith. So today, we are going to work on Praise to the Man again, this time with bagpipes! The traditional Scottish tune is Scotland the Brave, which I downloaded and burned to a cd I'll play for the kids today. There is a really nice slideshow about Joseph Smith with this tune that I found too, thanks to other Primary choristers who have impressive blogs.

It's hard to teach sunbeams words like "dispensation" "martyr" and "extol", but I can do hard things.

Motherhood

2011-06-13T08:40:00.001-07:00

May Photo Album

2011-05-29T19:10:00.000-07:00

It's a good thing the month of May has 31 days, and lucky for me that school got out on Friday and my job is over until August. I need a few really long naps.
May began in Spokane, where I ran (walked) a 12K race with my sisters Janna & Kerri - their first race ever. There were 8 of us in the race counting 3 nieces, 1 nephew, and Emily. So fun, so hot, so nice to see the river front area of Spokane for the first time in years, so proud of my athlete sisters! 12K is a long race for beginners, they endured it well. Emily ran super fast, her longest distance ever, kind of all by herself in a crowd of 50,000 people. I'm proud of her. We all got interviewed on Kerri's radio show in Coeur d'Alene the next day, and met Tom Luna, State Superintendent. Eventful! Controversial!
May also brought the trip to the Temple with Steven prior to his mission. Marisa was in town, so she was able to join us there along with Thomas & Caley. It was a session coincidentally full of people from Blackfoot, and a very nice night.

Emily turned 15 in May. Everyone came home in May. (We were just missing Doug, but I appreciate his part in getting Marisa here and back to her new job which started the day after Steven's farewell talk which also happened in May.) Our version of a Quinceañera for Emily was a wiffleball game in the backyard.

Steven left on his mission in May. We experienced our first curb-side rainy day MTC drop-off, not long after we dropped off Veronica & Kyle at the airport. It was a day of goodbyes.

Right after he got set apart on Tuesday night outside the Stake Center
But it was a good day, driving along in a rented Tahoe so all 8 of us could enjoy each other's company for those last few hours. We hurried home to a band concert, and found a little note and bag of Pay Day candy bars on our door. It really is a "pay day" for a parent to send their child on a mission, fulfilling that destiny that we have been thinking about and planning for since the day he was born. We have received one letter so far, and I'm a little sad that his missionary email doesn't seem to be working out for him, and tomorrow being Memorial day, there will be no postal service. His first letter was really good though, and I will just have to read that one again while I wait for letter number 2.
I got an award in May, "Inviting Employee of the Year" for the school district. There is one Teacher of the Year, and one non-teacher (me) who gets honored. I think I get a prize, I have to go to the August school board meeting to collect. I think I have to speak at the back to school meeting for district employees too. The extra special honor for me was that the person I will share the stage with is Mr. Hansen, who taught at least 5 of my children at the middle school, coached them in track, and took them on the 8th grade trip. He also holds a special place in my heart for getting Thomas something cool to drink when he was having chemotherapy on the one day that nobody from the family accompanied him there.
At school, I made a slideshow set to the music of Justin Bieber with 350 photos I had taken all throughout the year to show at the final Hall of Fame assembly, and burned 100 copies of the DVD for parents who asked for a copy. Baby, baby, baby, oh.

May also has brought some flooding to the area, I guess this means the drought is over. Kerry got called to fill sandbags Friday night out in Snake River. Our bike riding trail is now underwater at mile 4. And I think that's about all.
We said goodbye to a lot of family members, just temporarily of course, but the van was a permanent goodbye. We've had that van almost as long as we've had Marisa. It hasn't done much for the last decade except show up on our street-view on Google Earth. Not anymore.

A Walk to Remember or Bloom Where You're Planted

2011-04-30T07:29:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, you run a race to see how fast you can finish it, or to try to win. Sometimes you run just to see if you can finish it. This time I am driving 500 miles to go for a walk with my sisters. I remember going on a walk with my sister Kerri once, through an orange grove in California, and she had to carry me home. I remember walking through a temple in Canada on my wedding day with my sister Janna. So now we're going on another walk, we three, and hopefully nobody has to carry anyone, but we're going to cross that finish line together.

I've never done a 12K before, this should be so fun! I've never been in a race with over 50,000 people before either, I can't even imagine that many people in one place. The last time I ran a race up north, everyone came and cheered me on...my nieces, my family, my sisters. Now we are all doing the race together, nieces, daughter, sisters and I. Somehow I am the "experienced" racer here, hah, but I am glad for the opportunity to cheer them on all the way. Rah! Rah!

Finished!

2011-03-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

The 30-day blog challenge is done, and so is my baby blanket. The month ends as it began, with a blanket crocheted for this service project. It's been fun to re-discover the shell pattern which is my favorite, the one I used when I crocheted blankets for my own babies. I'm sure I'll make more, for potential future grandchildren, now that I remember how much fun it is. Thanks to Caley for issuing the challenge for the blog - and the blankets. I'm taking a day off tomorrow, the blog-free 31st day of March. Enjoy conference weekend, everyone!

Mixed-up Kids

2011-03-29T10:34:00.000-07:00

If I want to hang them on the same wall now, is it OK that they don't match? Should I just buy new frames for all of them? Black for the boys, white for the girls, or matching hardwood frames? What is the difference between eclectic and just plain old mis-matched? The girl's pictures were framed by the photographers, so they have brown paper on the back...and I don't think I could match those frames if I went looking for them. I need direction in my life.

On the third day of Spring Break...

2011-03-28T07:11:00.000-07:00

...and a Partridge in a pear tree!

Organic Music

2011-03-27T20:56:00.000-07:00

I played the organ in church today for the first time in six years or more, just filling in. Even though I practiced yesterday, I managed to get the settings all messed up, and the first two songs sounded like (a) a Catholic church (b) a haunted house or (c) I was really trying to change things up in the seventh ward. (these were all comments that were made to me by members of the congregation today.) But fortunately, there were four hymns today, and after pondering (and praying) really hard during the Croxford family's talks, it occurred to me what registration to use for the rest hymn and closing song. Whew. It's not as easy as it looks up there, so next time you are in church and you don't even notice the organist or what they are doing because they blend right in and sound so perfect, you should really thank them.

26.2

2011-03-26T08:12:00.000-07:00

It's been kind of like a marathon, making sure to find something to post on my blog each and every day for 26 days now. In blogging, as running, some miles are stronger, some are pretty weak, some you're just glad to have them over and done. I mostly enjoyed all of the miles I ran during the decade of running marathons, and I hope to be able to run many more (miles if not marathons.) My fastest was the St. George Marathon of 2003, when I ran with Carda who pushed me, chasing after a son I thought was ahead of me. My slowest was my 7th marathon, the last one I did before finding out that my meniscus was not only torn and tattered but had also been folded over all these years. Oops! The infinity pool totally made up for it. I promised Emily once that I would not be too old and tired to run a marathon with her when she was old enough. Her enthusiasm may have died down a bit now that she's approaching that age. Whether or not, I do have these 7 medals to show for those particular 183.4 miles. I couldn't have done it without my family there waiting patiently, cheering me on, and running with me the last few miles.

Ugly Tie Day

2011-03-25T17:20:00.000-07:00

Today was Ugly Tie Day at school. Once a month, the last Friday of each month, we have a "Freaky Friday" where we have a certain thing to wear or do, like crazy hair or socks, pajama day...you know how it goes at elementary schools. I had Kerry pre-tie a few ties for me last night, since I am unskilled in half-windsors, and took some extras to school for my co-workers who don't have husbands with ties. This tie I wore is made from some indestructible polyester, and it went to Guatemala a few decades ago with Kerry on his mission. It's truly ugly. (This photo was taken with some cute third graders also wearing ties, but I had to crop them out so I don't get fired)

Napili Bay

2011-03-24T21:02:00.000-07:00

In the mornings we would go walking out on Napili Point and look for sea turtles.

The Land Before Time

2011-03-23T22:51:00.000-07:00

Watch It

2011-03-22T20:16:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when BYU is playing in the NCAA tourney and beating Gonzaga in front of John Stockton and his son, you have to rearrange the furniture in your living room and watch the game in your Jimmer Bomber t-shirt.

Take Your Daughter to Work Day

2011-03-21T15:24:00.000-07:00

Veronica is in town just for the day, today. The actual "Take Your Daughter(s) and/or Son(s) To Work Day" is in April, but we like to get a jump on the season.

Where Are You Spring?

2011-03-20T22:18:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of Spring, so I went outside looking for signs of it. I guess the main (only?) sign is that the snow has melted, but nothing is budding or blooming or growing yet. I saw a bunny in the neighbor's yard, but he hopped off before I could capture him on film.

Is Spring in the unraked leaves from last fall, that were under the snow all winter?

Is it through the hole in the neighbor's fence?

Is it on the bare branches of the trees in the yard?

Is it reflected in the window of the Cadillac?

Semper Fi

2011-03-19T10:49:00.000-07:00

Eighteen = 2 months until 2 years begins

2011-03-18T15:37:00.000-07:00

Today being the 18th day of this 30 day blog fest reminds me that Steven is 18, and he is going on a mission on May 18th, 2 months from today. We have this missionary savings can that either Steven or one of his older brothers made in Primary, it's quite heavy with coins, and I'm really not sure how long it's been hanging around. Maybe we should open it up and see what's inside! Also, I recently ran across this necklace/charm/coin type thing that Kerry got from a girl in El Salvador when he was on his mission there 35 years ago. I wonder if that girl is still there, and if Steven might meet her too.

Steven and I the night he opened his mission call, 2-3-11

Groupies

2011-03-17T22:23:00.000-07:00

We're in a dinner group, tonight was our turn to host. It's St. Patrick's day, so we had Italian.

Unfortunably when we scheduled this, we didn't realize it would turn out to be during the 2nd half of the BYU game, but it was still fun having dinner with these nice people. BYU won/did not bust my bracket, and Thomas came over to watch the game downstairs with Emily.

Thomas Edison

2011-03-16T20:56:00.000-07:00

We're reading a book on Thomas Edison at school, my reading students and I, and it just amazes me how many things he invented. 1093 different patents. Movies, cars, tvs, aspirin, lightbulbs...so many things he had a hand in. I guess I appreciate how brilliant he was much more than I did when I was a kid in school. I learn a lot when I'm teaching little kids.

Also I really think there were
light bulbs that looked like these
in our old house on Sherman Avenue.

Recess

2011-03-15T19:47:00.000-07:00

Part of my job each day is recess duty. We go outside to play as long as it is above about 10 degrees. Looking forward to Spring!

Puzzlement

2011-03-14T19:43:00.000-07:00

This is a puzzle that Lynne painted and Ed cut out, way back when Veronica was a very little girl. A few pieces are missing, but isn't it so cute? My sister Lynne is a gifted artist, I love the little detailed animal paintings in each corner. I found it a few weeks ago in the basement when we were cleaning up for Emily to have a party, and hatched a plan to surprise Veronica by sending it to her for her birthday. But fortunately I couldn't find a box the right size to send it, and at the last minute I decided to save it for another time. I say fortunately because, the zip code that Kerry had saved in his ipod-phone for their address in KY was kind of mixed up...some numbers were right but not in the right order, so as a result I believe I sent her birthday gift to Wapiti, Wyoming. The puzzling thing is that it didn't occur to me that a zip code starting with an 8 would not be in Kentucky, and it didn't occur to the postal worker who took my small parcel either. (But in her defense, I guess since it was a flat rate parcel, she didn't have to look up the rate for various locations, so she just took it and that was that.)
One day maybe that little gift will get to Veronica, or maybe one day it will come back to us since the return address and zip was correct, but in the mean time, here is the gift that was given once, not given this year, and may show up at some point in the future.
If you're ever in Wapiti.

Plus Three

2011-03-13T19:49:00.000-07:00

Today I pay tribute to the people who married into our family: Caley, Kyle, and Doug. I couldn't ask for better spouses for my children.

R. Society

2011-03-12T11:00:00.000-08:00

It's not exactly Alex Boye rapping, but this is my own tribute video/musical number for the Relief Society birthday party today. I had a harpist arranged to play for us, but she had to go to Boise, so this was my Plan B. The song is "She" by Cherie Call.

Field Trip

2011-03-11T23:07:00.001-08:00

Let's all go to Boise

2011-03-10T19:46:00.000-08:00

I started to write a long explanation for this series of photos, but I think I'll just leave it to your imaginations. Tomorrow we get to take a for-real field trip to Rexburg.

Concerto

2011-03-09T22:09:00.000-08:00

Tonight: the Spring Concert for the Blackfoot Bands.

Last First

2011-03-08T18:13:00.000-08:00

My last child's first day of kindergarten. It was a big day for both of us. I cried, naturally. August 2001

sweet dreams

2011-03-07T22:01:00.000-08:00

It's time for bed on the 7th day of the 30 day photo challenge. Many naps were taken in that van, and even a few overnight sleeps. This photo is dated August 1994.

Curling

2011-03-06T19:02:00.000-08:00

Marisa and Emily get their hair all ready for church on a Sunday in 1997.

Can't wait until I'm Eight

2011-03-05T16:20:00.000-08:00

For then I'll be baptised, you see.

Today while I was leading the music at the Stake Baptism, it reminded me of those days when each of my children were baptized. Since today I wanted to find a little-kid photo of Thomas for my blog, I decided on this one of his baptism day.
1994, Rexburg

Kentucky Derby Birthday Girl

2011-03-04T05:53:00.000-08:00

She always loved horses and hats, and today is her birthday! Happy birthday Veronica! I love you, and miss you. Love, Mom

The first photo is from when we lived in the East Midvale 2nd Ward...our Primary was in the children's Pioneer day parade, the big one in Salt Lake City, July 1987

Broken Finger Right Hand

2011-03-03T05:25:00.000-08:00

I unearthed this photo from June 13, 1984 - Adam's 3rd birthday, which shows that his broken finger was also on his right hand. I don't remember which finger it was, but if it was his ring finger then that would be a really big coincidence for all three brothers to have broken the same finger. My t-shirt says "Happy Birthday Mickey Mouse" to match Veronica's pajamas, we must have had a theme going there, and she must have just woken up from a nap. Wymount Terrace, building 12-C.

While I was looking at old photos, this one surprised me because of how much that rock fireplace wall looks like the one in our house, I think this was taken at my Grandpa Rankin's house in Downey, California.

Haleakala

2011-03-02T17:36:00.000-08:00

There are probably much better photographs of Maui, pictures with the ocean, beautiful green palm trees and colorful flowers. But I like this one because I can look at it and remember what the wind and the sun felt like 10,023 feet above the ocean at the top of a volcano with Kerry on the occasion of our 25th anniversary.

Tunda

2011-03-01T16:35:00.000-08:00

This is my friend, Tunda. She is the school secretary, and the first friendly face you will see when you visit Wapello Elementary. Besides being a wonderful person who always makes me feel good about myself, she is also very talented at the art of crochet. She makes the most darling crochet hats with interchangeable flowers. A short time ago, I mentioned to her that I was going to be crocheting a baby blanket for the first time in many years, for a service project

that Caley had told me about. Tunda asked me for the link to the project, and said she would like to make one too. And so, today, she brought her finished project, which is as beautiful as she is. I just love the ripple effect of this service project, something I am doing to help Caley, which Caley is doing to help her friend, which now my friend Tunda is doing too. Although the blanket is made for the baby who will be wrapped in it, and for the young couple who wish to honor the memory of their little boy through this project, it feels like it was done for me, too. It reminds me of Mosiah 2:17, "And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."

*This is Day 1 of the 30 Day Photo Challenge, which was also suggested to me by my daughter-in-law Caley!

But then again...

2011-02-27T20:33:00.000-08:00

I guess it's more remarkable that most of the time things are just great, and in 30 years we seldom if ever had a disagreement about anything of substance.

I have lots of moles that never cause me a moment's grief, and the only 3 broken bones out of 6 kids all these years are one finger each on my sons (Adam age 3 in Provo, Thomas age 21 in Hungary, Steven age 18 in Rexburg.)

The 3rd thing

2011-02-24T21:39:00.000-08:00

Steven broke his finger and had to have surgery, I got a mole removed that turned out to be skin cancer, and I was just waiting for what the 3rd bad thing would be. It seems like there are always three things that happen together. Maybe it's just my imagination. But then, the education reform bill passed in the senate tonight, which may well mean that I don't have a job next year, and for the first time that I can remember in 30 years, my husband and I are having a huge political disagreement about this. So I think that's the 3rd thing.

By the chimney, with care

2010-12-24T19:45:00.000-08:00

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

2010-09-09T19:30:00.000-07:00

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

2010-09-05T21:42:00.000-07:00

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

2010-08-24T23:03:00.000-07:00

Greet the Morning

2010-08-15T22:58:00.000-07:00

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

2010-08-12T20:10:00.001-07:00

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

2010-08-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

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

2010-07-31T10:09:00.000-07:00

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

2010-06-29T23:33:00.000-07:00

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

2010-06-28T11:00:00.000-07:00

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!

2010-05-27T05:47:00.000-07:00

Graduation Announcements by WiddlyTinks.com

A Quiet Weekend

2010-05-15T14:31:00.000-07:00

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

2010-04-16T22:37:00.000-07:00

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

2010-03-28T16:19:00.000-07:00

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

2010-02-28T15:06:00.000-08:00

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

2010-02-21T19:45:00.001-08:00

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...

2010-02-14T23:06:00.000-08:00

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

2010-01-07T06:10:00.000-08:00

Louisville 21
Provo 19
Blackfoot 0
Rexburg -15

Top 10 of 2009

2009-12-29T09:34:00.000-08:00

All of the news organizations are doing their top 10 stories of the year, here are mine.

1. Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Thomas being diagnosed with cancer to start the year is the top story this year, and not only because it was so shocking and hard, but because it taught us more than we would have ever known about the power of prayer, faith, medicine, and our resilience as a family unit.

2. Coeur d'Alene Roadtrip. After being tied to Rexburg the whole, long winter and spring for chemo, and into early summer for radiation, Thomas and Caley had the goal to get out of town at long last. Coeur d'Alene was their dream destination, and we decided to join them and make it into a big family trip. Though we were missing Adam and Kyle, the rest of us jumped in the lake, floated down the river, golfed, and celebrated with our gracious North Idaho kinfolk. A spectacular Tubb's Hill cliff diving video featuring Steven can be seen on Veronica's blog.

3. Idaho's Youth Governor. Steven was elected at the Hi-Y convention to represent Idaho as Governor for the 2009-2010 school year, and took a trip in June to Catholic University in Washington D.C. to convene with all of the other national Youth Governors. He also met with Idaho Senators Risch and Crapo. He will preside over the state Hi-Y convention in April.

4. The Hicks's of Kentucky. Somebody had to be the first to do it, the first Park kid to move all far-off away from home. Veronica and Kyle moved to Louisville at the end of August, and Kerry drove back with them and Kyle's dad and a Penske moving van. We miss them, but not right now, because they are here for a long Christmas visit!

5. KSL Internship. Channel 5 in Salt Lake City is the big time, big market, big news station where Marisa completed her Broadcasting internship fall semester of 2009. Bruce and Deenie like her, and so do we. She got good experience in news reporting and producing, and also freeway rush hour driving from Provo to SLC every Tuesday and Thursday.

6. State PTA Convention. In April, Kerry and Emily drove with me to Coeur d'Alene where I presented a workshop and handed out state awards for the PTA Reflections program. It was fun to see family there, and also the woodwork from the Sherman Ave. home we grew up in. I'm in my 2nd year as Idaho PTA Cultural Arts chairperson.

7. St. George Marathon #7. It was a great weekend for a family trip to St. George in October, where I ran my 7th marathon in 7 hours and a minute. Not such a good time as far as running goes, but I wasn't last, I got a medal, and we had a great rental home for the weekend with all but the Kentucky kids there. Infinity pools are fun. Adam finding me between mile 24 and 25 with a bottle of Dasani is a vision I still see in my sleep.

8. Girl's Camp. I was a cook for the Stake, Emily was there, and we had a fun week at Camp Cumorah. Like PTA, this is a 2 year job, so I get to do it again in 2010. I learned that cooking for a lot of people can be fun, but it takes all day, even with my friend Tami in the kitchen too.

9. The Economy. Since all of the major news outlets will have this in their top 10 list, I thought I should too. Kerry's company was not immune to the economic downturn, but thankfully he survived each of the many rounds of layoffs over the course of the year. Many of his co-workers were not so fortunate.

10. Mr. & Mrs. Torres. There weren't any Park weddings this year, but there was a Motola cousin wedding, and we got to travel to the gorgeous Manti Temple with many of our family members from near and far to see Erik sealed to Corinna. This was of course another opportunity for the "girl cousins arranged by hair color" photograph series.

Runners up: Emily became a teenager, BHS boys won state in Football at Moscow with Steven in attendance, another midnight showing of Harry Potter with the Porter-Parks, concerts galore attended by various Parks - Celine Dion, Taylor Swift, David Archuleta - and Huey Lewis at the EISF, knee surgery for both of Kerry's parents and rotator cuff surgery for his Mom (too many curve-balls?), Adam made 2 trips to NYC to see friends, ball games, and famous landmarks, Steven was Jr. Prom royalty, Emily played her first flute solo in Sacrament meeting, Kerry spent a few Saturdays as the chase car for some hang-gliders, and Emily caught some really big fish.

Linger Longer

2009-11-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

We got a new hot water heater, 80 gallons. Steven and Kerry hauled it downstairs, and then the next night we had the missionaries for dinner and they made the mistake of asking if there was anything they could do to help our family...so they got to help haul the old heater up the stairs and out into the truck!

But now, we can linger longer in the shower with plenty of hot water for all. It's a good thing.

To Whom

2009-10-28T23:28:00.000-07:00

Whom Shall I Serve

Whom shall I serve,
what inner strength have I to give?
To others is the way I live
An evidence that I care?

A pillar of light
Young Joseph in a grove of trees
Found out when he was on his knees
His Father in Heaven cares

And with God
Nothing is impossible
But you must reach and take his hand
With God
Nothing is impossible
Those who have ears to hear
Will understand

The blind could see
The lame man could walk away
And life will change from night to day
When they know that someone cares
When they know someone cares
When they know someone cares

Twenty Six Point Two

2009-10-02T20:56:00.000-07:00

It's time to go to bed, the night before the marathon. I am filled with self-doubt and fear and the familiar "what have I done" feeling. It only gets worse on the bus ride 26 miles out of town. It's been a while since I've done this (3 years) so me and my knees are that much older and wiser too.

I just wanted to type in here what the teachers sang to me on Wednesday at the surprise assembly. It was so sweet, unexpected, surprising, and very humbling to have my whole school - staff and students - honor me in this way. So I really, REALLY, have to finish, get my medal, and make them proud. I will think of this song as I run. Kay Sorensen was the composer...you know what tune it's sung to.

while they sang, 26 different children came up and gave me a shoe shaped charm, with one little runner girl for the .2 at the end. I'm wearing that runner girl on my race number - 8012 - tomorrow!

Twenty-six miles to go
Just twenty six miles to go
I'm starting fresh,
I'll do my best
Just twenty-six miles to go.

Twenty-five miles to go
Just twenty-five miles to go
This is a breeze, I'll finish with ease
Just twenty-five miles to go!

Twenty miles to go
Just twenty miles to go
Look around
I'm covering ground
Just twenty miles to go!

Fifteen miles to go
Just fifteen miles to go
My knees are sore
but I can do more
Just fifteen miles to go!

Ten tough miles to go
Just ten tough miles to go
I'm more than half way
and starting to pray
Just ten tough miles to go!

Five aching miles to go
Just five aching miles to go
The sweat pours down
Will I drown?
Just five aching miles to go

Four hurtful miles to go
Just four hurtful miles to go
I'm breathing hard
my brain is jarred
Just four hurtful miles to go.

Three painful miles to go
Just three painful miles to go
I need a drink
I think I stink
Just three painful miles to go

Two endless miles to go
Just two endless miles to go
Why did I commit
to take this trip?
Just two endless miles to go!

One killer mile to go
Just one killer mile to go
The finish line
is almost mine
Just one killer mile to go!

Look at me, look what I did
Look at me, look what I did!
I ran the race
but not in last place
Hey, when can I do this again?

A Perfect Brightness

2009-09-19T14:59:00.000-07:00

My blog began, at the suggestion of my sister Kerri, as a way to record my feelings about Thomas having been recently diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. It turned out that many of my feelings on that matter were too tender, spiritual, and deeply personal to blog about. But my blog is named "a perfect brightness of hope" because of this talk by Elder Uchtdorf.

New Year's Eve 2008 was quite a dark day for me, I think I spent the whole day googling "Hodgkin's Lymphoma" and "chemotherapy", and while the prognosis seemed good, there were a lot of frighteningly stark statistics available at the websites I visited. As the clock struck midnight, I just stood there and cried on Kerry's shoulders, unwilling and unable to welcome in the new year which would bring ocologists and chemo into our vocabulary.

I didn't want any of my kids, especially not Thomas and Caley, to see my fears and sorrow, and think that maybe I didn't have faith, because I did. Early on the morning of New Year's Day, I found the conference talk by Elder Uchtdorf entitled "The Infinite Power of Hope." I decided that would be my personal mission statement of the year. I printed it off, and have read it many times this past year. Out of the darkness of New Year's Eve came the brightness of New Year's Day. Out of the darkness of winter came the hopeful spring, and then the warm summer. As a family, we celebrated the end of cancer treatments for our brother and son by jumping in Coeur d'Alene lake on a perfectly bright July day.

Elder Uchtdorf was sustained as an apostle at October Conference, as we watched from out hotel room in St. George, following the marathon in 2004. Five years later, we are going back to the marathon, and I expect that St. George is going to be perfectly bright, once again.

Do The Right Thing

2009-08-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Not long ago we learned that local soldier Randy Neff had been killed in Afghanistan. He was a classmate of Marisa’s, from elementary through High School, graduating in 2006. Flags continue to be flown at half staff in the city, as they have ever since word was received, and on Monday they were lowered all across the state of Idaho.
Marisa’s 5th grade year was probably the worst public school class of any of my children ever, and with 6 kids that’s a lot of classes. I had never requested a teacher before, I never saw the need, and this was my 4th child in 5th grade, so there had already been over 40 opportunities to do so. I found out that year why parents request, and it often has nothing to do with the teacher. It has to do with the other students in the class. Pretty much all of the other happy, well-adjusted children’s parents had requested the other 5th grade teacher that year, and unfortunately the principal let this happen, and the two classes were very unbalanced. Marisa’s class had only 4 girls and about 20 rowdy boys. Everywhere she went that year whether it was P.E., Music, or the Library, her class was told they were the worst class that specialist teacher had ever seen. Often they didn’t even get to participate in the activity, spending the whole 30 minutes being lectured by a teacher at their wit’s end. Sometimes the teacher would say “this is the worst class I’ve ever seen – except you Marisa” which was nice but still didn’t give her a chance for happy class participation in a game of volleyball. She was in GT, so once a week she got to leave her classroom and learn some things. I imagine her classroom teacher was frustrated and overwhelmed with this class. Perhaps that’s why when Randy Neff was being bullied, she believed the bullies when they said, for example, he was breaking his own pencils and blaming it on them. I didn’t know this until this past week, but the time finally came in that class when Randy’s mother came to school and confronted the class and the teacher. The teacher asked the class if what Randy had been telling her was true, that he was being bullied by these boys. Nobody would say anything, they were probably either afraid or they were doing the bullying. But Marisa spoke up, and she told the truth, and was the only one who was brave enough to stand up for the bullied boy. I’m proud of her little 10 year old self for doing that all those years ago.
Seven years later, when she was a senior in High School, she got called out of class one day. It was Randy Neff, and he wanted to thank her for being the only one to stand up for him and tell the truth back in 5th grade. I’m proud of him for doing that too.
You never know when something you do is going to have an effect on someone, enough that they will remember it for years, and enough that they feel the need to tell you “thank you” seven years later.
I looked in Marisa’s yearbook to find a photo of the boy who was killed by a roadside bomb half a world away. Under his photo is his senior quote which reads “People can hurt you only if you let them”.

Where I Run

2009-07-26T23:43:00.000-07:00

When I'm running, I don't have a camera. So tonight Kerry & Emily went on a bike ride with me & the camera around the greenbelt so I could show you where I spend a lot of time lately. By mid-August, I will have run to Butte, so to speak.

Mama Mia, it's about time!

2009-07-13T22:56:00.000-07:00

I ran with an mp3 player for the first time ever today. Revolutionary!

In the past, I've had this Sony armband radio, with 10 preset stations, so I could switch from station to station til I found a good song to run to. But you know, sometimes there's just not a good song being broadcast anywhere in range, and it can be a little unwieldy to run with an entire radio on your arm. I haven't used it at all this summer, and I have missed running with music.

Today at the end of my 5.31 miles, I felt like the time had flown by and for the first time this summer I felt like I could have actually run a little further than I had planned on going. And it was even a Monday! Emily had helped me upload what little music we could quickly find on this computer: Taylor Swift, ABBA, and couple of random Tim McGraw songs. (This does not count the 850,000 songs that Steven has on here that I have never heard of/could never run to.) By the next time I run, I will have found the rest of the music I know I have around here - all of my favorite running songs that will help get me down the road, and around the greenbelt, as the mileage picks up on the way to St. George.

Running to the radio, you only ever hear current pop and country hits, so this was the first time I think I ever ran to ABBA. It was good fun, but the best beats-per-minute song turned out to be that Tim McGraw song with the BBQ stain on his white T-shirt. That song got me through the last quarter mile, and also made me think that this coming labor day weekend will be the one when Steven is 17.

The first marathon I trained for in 2001, the song that was played most often was Drops of Jupiter, so that always reminds me of running. I'll be needing that one, as well as the most played song of marathon training 2002, Kelly Clarkson - Miss Independent. Then there was the summer of Sheryl Crow. My playlist will have to include Legs by ZZ Top, Runnin' on Empty by Jackson Browne, and Foo Fighters, Learn to Fly (the song that was playing as I ran the morning Adam flew home from his mission.) More will occur to me. Songs that are slower I still like, if doubletime turns out to be a good running pace. Feel free to suggest songs to me that suggest running to you!

I'm really excited as I train to feel myself getting faster and stronger each day, even if by most standards I am neither fast nor strong. The other day the manager of the Eastern Idaho State Fair was walking around the lake, and I as ran past she said "Good for you!" to me. Yeah, Doris, good for me!

Twentynine

2009-06-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how fast 29 years goes by! I am trying to think of something memorable Kerry and I can do today for our anniversary - after watching Emily's softball game tonight that is. Maybe we could head on over to Twentynine Palms, except I have to shop for groceries for Stake Girl's camp this weekend, so a trip will have to wait. Not sure a Marine Base is the best place for an anniversary trip anyway.

Here is a list of memorable Anniversaries past.

1st anniversary - we had a newborn, Adam was just 12 days old. We couldn't bear to leave him for even an hour so...we had our anniversary at Kerry's parent's house where they "babysat" Adam inside and we BBQ'd steaks outside on their back porch.

4th anniversary - we had another new baby, Veronica was just 3 mos old, and we lived in Wymount Terrace. Our good friends and neighbors, Steve and Mari Roberts, volunteered cheerfully to babysit for free so we could go out to dinner and a movie. The movie? Ghostbusters!

10th anniversary - We lived in Rexburg, and had 4 little kids. We took them to Grandma and Grandpa Park's for the day and went golfing at Jefferson Hills golf course and then out to dinner.

11th or 12th anniversary - June 25th that year was the Rexburg Relay For Life event, and Kerry had signed us up to walk a certain amount of time on the Basic American Foods team. We walked the same number of laps as the number of years we had been married. I think it was 12.

15th anniversary - It was a Sunday, so we just had a nice dinner with our little kids - no Emily yet - then went on a peaceful stroll around Smith Park. Our last anniversary in Rexburg.

24th anniversary - Simon & Garfunkle concert in Salt Lake city - the kids are now old enough to just leave them without grandparents or babysitters. We had a nice room at the Marriott downtown. Our seats were up pretty high, but it was a great concert.

25th anniversary - Maui! We had a condo right on Napili Bay. We snorkeled every day, went running up to the airport on the hill, took the road to Hana, climbed a volcano - and spent June 25th on a sunset dinner cruise. Perfect! There was a newlywed couple on our cruise, still in their wedding attire. We told them we would meet them back there in 25 years for their 25th anniversary and our 50th.

Usually we'll go out to dinner, or sometimes the Temple on our anniversary. Plans for our 30th anniversary next year are to go to Canada! We haven't been there since our wedding trip, it's just not on the way to anywhere. This time though, I think we will need a passport.

Purple Shirt

2009-06-19T00:32:00.001-07:00

Since it's past midnight now...this is the day that is the last day of radiation. It's also the day of the Relay for Life. Thomas and Caley came down for the survivor's dinner tonight, and he got his official purple shirt. I think he looks super cool in purple.

Crossroads of the West

2009-06-07T19:59:00.000-07:00

Today was fun, Steven flew for the first time. He is the Youth Governor for Idaho for 2010, and today began the national conference for all youth governors in Washington D.C. He had to be at the airport in Salt Lake by 6 a.m. in order to get to D.C. by this afternoon for orientation. Kerry got some photos of the governor going through security. The interesting thing is that today Veronica and Kyle flew home from their annual Outer Banks trip, so they were also in the Salt Lake airport, and probably crossed paths with Steven somewhere over the midwest. They had the same connections - Chicago departing and Denver returning.

And then, because it truly is the crossroads of the west, Marisa's friend Doug from the wiffleball game was also flying into SLC this morning returning from our favorite destination, HNL. I wouldn't be surprised if Sarah was also in the airport today, since SLC is her home base for her airline job.

It's also JC and Norma's 60th anniversary today, so truly momentous is this date in Park family travel history. 10 years ago today we were in Yellowstone for their 50th anniversary, when Adam was a brand new high school graduate who was still 17, the age Steven is now.

We had some time for a Sunday drive on the way home, so we stopped by the Utah Capitol Bldg. where Emily learned that her lot in life as the youngest child when all of the older children are gone is to get dragged around by her aged parents looking for things like the Mormon_Meteor . It wasn't there, it was vandalized and moved from the Capitol, so instead we found the Mormon Battalion monument and the name of Great, great, great (great, great?) Grandpa James Pollock Park from whence the J comes for all of the boys middle names.
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Happy Birthday Dad!

2009-04-19T09:52:00.001-07:00

Today is Dad's 80th birthday. Or I guess, now that he has passed away, it is the 80th anniversary of his birth? Whatever, it's still his birthday and so in honor, I have this photo-booth strip that was taken in 1965, just before we moved to Idaho from California. I believe that this was my "school photo" for that year because I was the only one of my siblings too young for a school photo, at the age of 4 1/2. It's a treasure, this photo, surviving all these many years.

I was named after my dad - Ronna/Ronald and so then I went right ahead and named Veronica after both of us. (What she does with the "ron" suffix/prefix/infix is up to her.)

So you see, I had no bangs, my hair was blonde, and he was trying to make me say something because I really don't think I had that much of an overbite!

We always used to celebrate Dad and Mom's birthdays together, since hers is tomorrow, but now I guess Mom gets her own day and cake.

Today Emily will play her first flute solo in Sacrament meeting. I remember playing for my dad, and that he always thought I was wonderful. So at first, I was going to have Emily play a song that her Grandpa loved, but then we found "Stairway to Lasting Joy" in the old, orange Sing With Me primary songbook, which is a song Emily's dad loves. It should be a great memory, since we meet in the old 1st Ward building where Kerry attended primary long ago. I'm thankful for all of my happy childhood memories, and hope that my own kids have made some happy memories too.

Happy birthday daddy, wherever you are!

Creativity

2009-03-31T20:16:00.000-07:00

Tonight was the Regional Reflections Awards ceremony, and it was fun because I didn't have to be in charge. I was just the State lady who got to come up on stage and hand out 5 awards, one of which was to Caley's little brother, so that was particularly fun. It got me thinking about the things which have been created by my 6 children over the years for the Reflections contest. It began with Adam in Kindergarten in West Jordan, and a dragon or dinosaur he drew for Reflections that year. We have the raining money photo, and Thomas in a suit with a handful of cash. Emily drew a picture of a "different kind of hero" which was the theme that year, of 2 missionaries. Adam did a collage once of a gameboy, when the theme was "If I had a wish." So in that round about way, I came to find this talk by Dieter Uchtdorf on creating, which is a talk from last year's Women's conference, and also this nicely done video. On behalf of all of the little artists, composers, and authors who created something for a PTA competition, or a card for Grandma, or a picture to hang on my fridge, I am posting this video here.

I Am Legend

2009-03-07T19:49:00.000-08:00

I don't think that I have ever spent the night alone in my house before, in my lifetime. There has always been somebody else here. The past 2 nights and 3 days, it's been eery, just me and Scout the skittish cat, and no other human life forms. I don't mind solitude, and it's not like I haven't had any contact (Emily has texted me 20 or 30 times.) But I think I'm ready for people to come home now. I'm starting to talk to Scout, more than usual. Which reminds me, I miss Buttercup. And people. And voices (that aren't in my head!)

Table for Siete

2009-02-17T17:31:00.000-08:00

It's fun to have married kids.We got to spend this Valentine's Day with the Parks and the Hicks... and Emily. Macho burrito, macho fun!

-22

2009-01-27T05:43:00.001-08:00

When I woke up, igoogle said it was -22 here. I think we get to have a snow day if it's -20. Now it's just -18 though, and I guess that's warm enough for little children to stand in the dark waiting for buses. Cold hands (feet, noses and ears) warm heart, I guess.

Some links to some things that might be helpful

2009-01-23T18:04:00.000-08:00

I'm just kind of collecting websites about scholarships, grants, and help available and I'll be adding them here, so I can find them again later.

http://cancerforcollege.org/Scholarship_Info.html

http://www.mariolemieux.org/

http://imtooyoungforthis.org/community/i2y-money.shtml

http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/all_page?item_id=4599

In Sickness and in Health

2009-01-22T15:49:00.000-08:00

They both thought that she would be the first one to spend any time in the hospital, and then just for something fun like a new baby. I thought that nobody in my little family would ever get cancer because we have no family history, and no riskiness. Since Thomas was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma, it has been a very long three weeks, including a couple of surgeries, a chemotherapy treatment, an ER visit, and a hospital stay. But you can't argue with a 100 percent cure rate. We have all learned a lot about PET scans, neutropenia, and ABVD. Something I already knew was how wonderful Caley is, how brave Thomas is, and how much my children love each other. A lot of people this week thought that the presidential inauguration was the thing to watch, but I saw something even better when a prayer was answered in front of my eyes.

Unfortunable

2009-01-18T08:52:00.000-08:00

Today (since we have the late Church schedule, and I have time to think about things on Sunday mornings) I was thinking. When exactly did the word "unfortunable" come to be in our family vocabulary? I knew that Emily had written it in an email to Thomas when he was in Hungary, so I went searching through old emails. It was fun reading through a few of them again. I had used the search feature, but the only "unfortunable" emails that came up were ones using the word, but not the original.

I found it finally, Emily had originally spelled it "unfortanable." So here it is, the genesis of a word, and a sincerely sweet message from a 3rd grade girl to her big brother.

June 12, 2005

"And now, a few words from Emily:

Well mom pretty much covered everything. I'm in down-town dance studio! Today in primary I had a girl in my class named Emily too! Her sister Jessica was in my class too, and they have younger siblings a little brother and sister . They're all from Palm Springs, California where they're was an earth quake! How unfortanable! The Chinese torists said hi to me . I'm rrunning out of things to say ! I love you ! Do good over there! Well I have to go to bed now! Good night! Oh wait!! Good morning! See ya ! Bye! Love ya! Bu bye!"

Also in this email, we sent Adam's address in Rancho Cucamonga, (he had slept through the earthquake), Marisa just left for Girl's State, Aunt Lynne stopped by with a bus load of Chinese tourists on their way to Yellowstone, and Kerry and I were getting ready to leave for our 25th anniversary trip to Maui.

A Righteous Battle

2009-01-14T23:11:00.000-08:00

Since the new year began, we have been reading the daily message from Gordon B. Hinckley's book "Stand A Little Taller" before we say our bedtime prayer. Tonight Kerry asked me to read, and so I opened it up to see that the message for today was "A Righteous Battle."

"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil," begins the scripture from Ephesians. The message from Pres. Hinckley tells us that "we are involved in an intense battle."

So far, most days the messages seem to pertain to what is going on, right now, in our family. These three have stood out in the past week -
January 6 (the day we went to the oncologist): Faith Overcomes
January 7 : The Power of Prayer
January 8 : Healing Power

I'm glad that I had the inspiration to look for this little book that Kerry gave me for Valentine's day in 2002, it's good to have a little daily dose of something that reminds us that there is no obstacle too great, no challenge too difficult, if we have faith.

The Starting Line

2009-01-13T06:43:00.001-08:00

At the St. George Marathon in 2002, Thomas and I got off of the bus that drove us 26.2 miles out of town and dropped us off in the middle of nowhere. We were not going to be running together, because he was fast and I wasn't, but at the starting line, in all of the excitement and in the middle of 5000 other runners, just before the gun went off, he gave me a hug and said something like, "I love you mom, see you at the finish line!"

As I ran along at my 5 hour pace, I scanned every aid station I passed, just to make sure he wasn't there. I wasn't sure how well prepared he was for running a marathon, at the age of 16 and with his longest run ever being about 5 miles. I was incredibly relieved when I got close to town and saw the suburban, and he was in it, and he had the medal around his neck. It was actually better than finishing the race myself to see that he had made it safe and sound.

Today is a different sort of starting line for Thomas, and while I won't be running the same race, I will be cheering from the sidelines.

My Blue Italian Lake

2009-01-12T22:41:00.000-08:00

To My Child

You are the trip I did not take,
You are the pearls I could not buy.
You are my blue Italian lake,
You are my piece of foreign sky.