EmBRACED

My baby’s growing up! There’s just something about a child getting braces that makes them seem so….teenage! I know she’s only ten (very soon to be eleven), but I can feel the teenage years pressing hard on our heels. Along with the braces has come a tiny bit of teenage attitude. Not much, Mary Kate is a very pleasant child, but still, there is a tiny smidgen of it there. Just enough for Mike and I to get a little glimpse of the future.

This morning I went in Mary Kate’s room to do a little straightening and found that she had left me a little message on her white board……

Heart melting huh! I’m just going to soak it up. I know someday, in the relatively near future, she may not so readily associate her parents with hearts and flowers. We will be entering a realm of the parent-child relationship that will be completely new for all involved. I just hope we are ready. No matter what though, I will always love my Mary Kate.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

It’s Our Anniversary

 

In my life I’ve had many good things come my way, but the best thing that has ever happened to me is Michael. He’s a dream to be married to and I love him with all my heart. Happy Anniversary sweetheart!

My New Niece

I have a new, little (and I mean little.. weighing in at only 5 lbs 4 oz) niece. She is perfect, and the most beautiful preemie I have ever seen. My sister-in-law Laura and her husband Tim came to Utah last week for the funeral of Mike’s grandma. They were scheduled to fly home to Boston on Saturday after the funeral, but late Friday night Laura’s water broke. That quickly took care of their trip home, and to our delight Laura give birth to her first baby girl here in Utah, where we were able to actually see her before she turned two! Although born 5 weeks early, she is doing remarkably well and is very adept at snuggling in her pink blankie and looking adorable.

The picture above was taken through the glass at the NICU. I had to sneak in under an assumed name (thanks Cami) in order to hold her, but this little deception (okay, big deception) was worth it. I could have sat there and snuggled her all day. 

Being there in the NICU with Laura, holding my new niece, I couldn’t help but think back about six years ago when my twins were born prematurely as well and spent some time in the NICU . Due to the stress of having premature twins and some serious postpartum issues, bringing our babies home was difficult to say the least. My sweet sister-in-law Laura (along with my mother) practically moved into our house to help out. Laura got up almost every single night to help feed the babies, not to mention all the bathrooms she cleaned, stories she made up for Mary Kate, diapers she changed, errands she ran, or sympathy crying she did for me, all the while trying to stay on top of her master’s studies at BYU. When I think about those difficult weeks long ago, one person I will always be grateful for is Laura. I will love her forever for her for what she did.

Laura and Jeffrey, 2004

Over the years Laura has been so good to me, to Michael, and especially to my children. She didn’t marry and have children until relatively later in life, so she spent all her mothering energy on her nieces and nephews. My children have always been blessed to be the recipients of all that energy and love.

 

Laura and Mary Kate, 2007

Laura and Jonathan, 2006

A Sunday afternoon, 2006

Now Laura has a baby of her own. Guaranteed, she will be an awesome mother. She’s had tons of practice! She’s also waited a long time to have a baby of her own so she won’t take it for granted. My new niece is one lucky girl.

Laura, we wish we could give you back a little bit of what you’ve given us over the years. If you need anything that we can possibly give you from miles away, don’t hesitate to ask. We can’t wait to watch you be a mommy.

P.S. Nobody ask me what the baby’s name is! Laura has been known to take her time when making decisions. She’s taking her time with this one. I’ll let you know when baby has a name.

Soccer Mom

I live in the suburbs….. check. I drive a minivan….check. I now have school age children that I drive around in said mini van to various sporting events…check. Yep, by definition it looks like I’m officially a soccer mom. Oh dear.

This kid’s sports stuff is new for us. Our first child was a very girly girl who had no interest, in fact showed mostly disdain for anything involving a team and a ball. Now we have two boys and things are very different. We signed the boys up for indoor pee-wee soccer this winter, and by that I mean, we signed ourselves up to be wildly entertained twice a week. Any of you who have kids that play or who have played pee-wee soccer know exactly what I’m talking about… it’s hilarious!

I have to say though, between game one and game ten I saw some real improvement. I can’t say that I saw any future David Beckhams on the team, but by the last game it seemed like most of the kids somewhat understood what they were supposed to be doing. That last game could have actually passed as real soccer… almost.

My boys have loved playing. Okay, I should say Jeffrey loved it, Jonathan ran a little hot and cold about it (it turns out he’s not a big fan of running), but over all I think they both enjoyed themselves. They were totally bummed after they finished their last game and are already begging us to sign them up for outdoor soccer.

I think the whole family has been converted, even Mary Kate has decided she might want to play a little soccer or some other sport that involves a team and a ball. I have a funny feeling that in the future I may be spending considerable amounts of time watching my kids from the bleachers.

FYI… our team didn’t win a single game. In fact I think there were only about 10 points scored the whole season, 9 out of those 10 being scored by the same kid, but as one little girl on the team said to Mike after he told them to go out and try really hard to score a goal, ”Hey coach… um…it doesn’t matter if we win or lose… it only matters if we have fun.” Well said Ally. She should have repeated that to some of the other soccer parents in the bleachers. Good grief!

There were two girls on the team, Ally and Savannah. They proved that soccer is most certainly for girls too. Ally (in the glasses) was especially concerned about whether or not her fans were cheering for her. She would run past the bleachers every so often yelling, “Are you remembering to cheer for me?”

Here’s my Jeffrey in a blur of action….

… and my Jonathan (red shorts) in a rare and brief blur of action….

I think I like being a soccer mom.

Happy Birthday Melanie!

This is a picture of my three children with my cousin Melanie. Today is Melanie’s birthday. I think she is 25 years old today. This is my favorite picture of Melanie. Just look at the way Mary Kate is looking at her. Can you see the love? I can’t thank her enough for all she has given to my children and family over the years. She is one of our favorite people in all the world.

Melanie has many talents. She is a horse lover, an ASL expert, a flute player, a soccer star, and a great college student, but I think her best talent is how loving she is to everyone around her. She would do anything for anyone. Happy Birthday Miss Mels. We just wish we could be there to celebrate with you. SO glad we’re family. We love you so much!

Lucinda Coy Anderson Dickey

Mike and I are now grandparentless. Mike’s last surviving grandmother passed away last week. Lucinda Coy Anderson Dickey was 88 years old, and as beautiful at 88 as was is in her twenties. Last Thursday night she changed into her pajamas, sat down in her rocking chair to watch TV, and quietly slipped away. I don’t know about you, but I’m signing up for that way of exiting this world. Such a peaceful way to go!

Lucinda spent most of her 88 years living on the same quiet street in Millville Utah. In fact she passed away only 50 feet from where she was born. This is the house where she lived most of her married life. She raised all nine of her children in this tiny home, which didn’t even have a basement until her teenage children dug one out using shovels. Every time I step inside this little home, I marvel at how she raised her significantly large family in such a small space.

There is a frequently quoted, pioneer saying that goes like this- ”Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.” Lucinda practiced this principle to the letter. She was extremely frugal, and her home and belongings reflect that. As we were going through her home we found all sorts of treasures from the past…..

Look at all the canning! There is bottled fruit on those shelves from the 70’s! Some jars were as old as me!

There wasn’t really much of value in her home, except perhaps sentimental, but Lucinda most certainly lived a valued life. Her funeral was attended by hundreds of friends, neighbors, and family. She had a profound effect on so many who’s lives she touched over the years. I get happy when I think about her reunion in heaven with her loved ones, especially her husband Arnold who she has been patiently waiting to see for thirty years.

My favorite thing about Lucinda was her laugh. She had the cutest little chuckle. I’ll miss hearing it. I’ll miss her white hair, the gift of chocolates she gave us each Christmas without fail, and her applesauce cookies. I’ll always be grateful to her for giving me the best father-in-law in the world and for her loving influence on Michael, myself, and my children. We’ll miss you Grandma.

(lovely photos – courtesy of my brother-in-law Lance)

Just when we were getting excited for spring….

…..it snows.

This is really the first decent, deep snow we’ve had all winter long. It’s a good thing I didn’t throw out the boy’s tattered boots like I was planning to. They’ve been out in those tattered boots since 10 o’clock this morning and still haven’t come in. The whole neighborhood is out in fact.

The little pink bundle in glasses is our neighbor Ally. She’s the cutest, funniest little girl. My boys love to play with her. She has just recently figured out which twin is Jonathan and which is Jeffrey. Previously she had been calling them each both names just to cover her bases.

Our neighbor Brooklyn is in the green. She’s turning 10 tomorrow. I keep track of how long we have lived here by how old she is. We moved here just after she was born. I can’t believe we’ve lived here 10 years!

Just yesterday morning the boys were jumping on the trampoline in bare feet and PJs. Today it’s covered with snow.

My children, all bundled up…..

 

Even though we are itching for spring, we’re glad we got some snow to play in before winter’s end. We’re going to enjoy it too because I’m sure it will melt before the week is out.

Look Who Came for a Visit!

See that big grin on my face? I’m smiling like that because two of my favorite people in the world came to town for a visit this weekend. My cousins Stephen and Emilie, both between jobs at the moment, came to Utah to get a little R and R.

I haven’t seen Stephen in two years, so I was super excited when I heard he was planning to come. And when he called to say Emilie was coming along too, well, I did the dance of joy right there in my kitchen.

It was a nice, relaxing visit. We lunched at Kneaders, one of our favorite spots, took a nostalgic tour of BYU campus where Stephen and Emilie both went to school, met up with brother Marc and enjoyed a lovely dinner at our favorite Bombay House, and chatted the night away catching up on all the news. The kids were extra delighted when they found out the cousins were staying the night. Me too. I love a good sleep over.

To top it all off, we had dinner at my mom’s house on Sunday with Brad and Rosie. What a perfect weekend!

When Stephen, Emilie, and Marc are around you can count on a good time. They are never boring. They are also very good to me and mine. We love having them here, even if it’s just for a short while.

Now Emilie and Stephen will be returning home to some new and exciting adventures in NYC. I can’t wait to hear all about them. Best of luck you two.Thanks again for coming. It was great to have a visit. I love you and miss you both. So glad we’re family.