AS I HAVE LOVED YOU....

 The granddaughters were all asked to sing a song at grandma's funeral.

We sang, As I have loved you.

It is a rare treat to sing with my sisters.

I think we could have been the Osmonds. Yes, we sound that good.

We even sound better with our cousins.

We so missed our calling in life girls.
 

 

 

 

Us the morning of the funeral! I have such a beautiful family!

AUNT SUSANNA's CHINESE DINNER

 My Aunt Susanna volunteered to make my whole family plus the extended family dinner.

She just needed some one to chop vegetables.

I am amazing at chopping. It really is one of my best, not very useful, talents.

I told her I would be there.

 

It was so fun cooking with her.

I love her.

She is magical in the kitchen.

My brother. 

He was too hungry to wait.

He drank peaches.

I think he is handsome. Don't you?

 He was such a good little boy while I cooked.

 He was so happy.

He smiled for everyone.

All my cousin's were enamored with him.

They kept saying to eachother, "You have to see how smiley this baby is. I have never seen a happier baby!"

Thanks cousins we like him a lot too.

 I know yummy. Drooling yet?

 Sierra and Tyler were starving waiting for dinner.

I told them a secret.

Whenever I was starving waiting for dinner.

I would sneak over to my Grandma Hair's house.

She always had food.

She was always eager to nurish our little bodies.

All we had to do was mention we were hungry.

In true grandma fashion at the mention of hunger, she handed the kids crackers and cheese, carrot sticks, cheese sticks, and finally a small bottle of juice to share.

I told the kids they had to be sneaky because my mom never really liked it when I snuck snacks right before dinner.

They giggled.

Then we went back over to my mother's house.

They weren't sneaky.

They shared their crackers with the other starving grandkids.

They even passed around the juice grandma gave them.

Tyler finished off the last swallow.

Thus the glare Sierra is giving him. :)

I hope they remember our little trip to their great-grandma's house always.

It was a fun adventure in the middle of a busy day.

Sierra loved playing with my cousin Tanner.

Look at that grin.

She couldn't get enough.

He was so sweet with her.

SUNDAY and SOUP

Sunday is such a beautiful day.

I am happy when we are all filling the chapel together.

I was looking down the row at my family.

All of my sisters and brothers and all of their wives, husbands and children.

I felt so blessed to be with them.

(Missed you Em!)

There is no better way to start a week.

We all got together for dinner. We each shared a soup.

Phillip's was by far the best.

I had two bowls.



My sweet niece kept kissing Mr. James. She is going to have a brother of her own soon to love on.

 

 

My nephew Ty completely in love with his new cousin. Aren't they precious?

YUMMY INDIAN FOOD!

I wish the picture did it justice.

The food was amazing.

I am still dreaming about it!

I love that all my sisters cook and all of them love to try new recipes.

I love that we share yummy food when we are together.

My sister Michelle got her Naan Bread recipe from Mel's Kichen Cafe.

I have made it once since I came home. I will make it again!



BACK at MY PARENT's HOUSE a BAD ACCIDENT

My other grandparents, who live next door to my parents, were chopping down a massive willow tree in there front yard the day I arrived.

My brothers and brother-in-laws were helping.

I was teasing a friend that it might be strange to the rest of the world to have the family out chopping down a tree a few days after my grandma's death and a few days before her funeral. 

My friend laughed and said it was typical Mormon, "We know there is life after death and grandma is with grandpa, so we don't morn the same way other people do."

Strange or not my family was out serving my other grandparents.

When a c-clamp was jerked from the tree and flew into my father's head.

I didn't take any pictures of the injury it was gross.

There was a lot of blood.

He was driven to the emergency room.

A policeman may have seen my brother's driving and tried to pull them over, but my brother didn't stop till he was at the hospital.

The policeman was a little ornery.

They stitched my daddy up and sent him home.

He was scheduled for surgery yesterday.

He now has three titanium plates in his head.

Madison said a beautiful prayer after the accident.

She said, "Heavenly Father, thank you that grandpa could survive."

When many of us were wondering why this had to happen to our Dad the day before his mother's funeral, she expressed thanks in a way only a child can.

He was blessed.

The doctor said if it had of hit a bit higher he would not be with us.

We are grateful he is still with us.

 

 

GRANDMA PASSED AWAY

I heard my grandma passed away, so I headed back to Utah.

I will miss her. She was a beautiful lady full of grace and courage.

Her life inspires me to be a better wife, mother, and homemaker.

 

I love her home. It was one of the many safe places I loved during my teenage and young adult years.

(They lived less than a block away from my parents.)

Unconditional love always embraced you, when you walked through the doors of this home. 

I will always remember my grandparents coming to the door and putting their arms around me with large smiles.

Grandpa past away nine months ago and grandma wanted to be with him so badly.

She would say, "I just want to die."

They were soul mates and loved to be together.

It was hard for her to be without him.

 

But, it will be harder still for all of us to be without them.

I love them. I will miss them, so much.

Their home will be sold, which makes us all sad.

 

I just had to take a few pictures.

Grandma always kept her home neat and clean.

Everything always had a place.

It was free from any clutter or excesses.

It was filled with simple treasures collected over a life time.

Each room was modestly decorated usually with items grandma had made.

 

My favorite room in the house was grandpa's study.

It was just off of the main living room with glass doors.

There are files and files of information collected over a life time of studying the gospel.

My sisters were flipping through grandpa's files and came across a file for practical jokes and a thick file for brownies. I smile thinking of grandma's search for the perfect brownie and grandpa's search for the best practical joke. Those files are them.

 

My favorite thing about their home was the beautiful spirit that filled it.

You felt the need to be a little more reverent when you walked through their door.

Don't get me wrong there was laughter, and lots of it, but the kind of laughter that lifts your soul.

There was joy, but the kind of joy that makes you feel so completely loved.

How my soul will miss that nurishment...

 

I love you grandma and grandpa.

I will miss you.

Stay close to us.....