Husband and Father

Husband and Father
July 15, 1958 ~ August 25, 2008

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

April Showers Bring........



May Weddings!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Modesty

This video has been very popular lately. It reminded me of an experience we had last summer.

For the most part, the girls’ and I try to dress modestly. That has been something Steve especially has stressed with them from an early age. I am not claiming to be self righteous, or never ever having the girls wear something that doesn’t meet someone else’s modesty guidelines; but for the most part, I’d say we TRY to dress modestly.

Last summer in Hawaii, I was amazed at the comments we got while swimming at the beautiful hotel pool and delving into the crystal blue ocean. It was not once, but several times I was asked where we were from and if we were Mormons.

I finally was curious why people were so interested. I asked a young newlywed, why she asked. She said, “Well, I have noticed how modest all your girls swim suits are, and thought for sure you must be Mormons. I have also been watching your family play together in the pool, and thought how nice it was that you all have fun together.”

I am definitely not advocating that only Mormons wear modest swim suits or play together in the pool that simply is not true. However, I thought it was interesting that someone would notice, and inquire as to what religion we were.

On another day, on our Hawaii vacation but at a different location, I was asked the same thing. Again, simply because of the modesty of my girls’ swim suits. This older woman took it a little too far, when she said, “Is that your husband over there?” Walking across from us was a man in a BYU T-shirt. Wouldn’t Steve have liked that comment!

Monday, April 25, 2011

Cookies

My outlook on life is a little brighter with a clean house. It makes me feel organized and happy. It has been a little overwhelming for me and the kids to clean the entire house by ourselves, so I have enlisted the help of a cleaning service. Mrs. G and her sister are very trustworthy, and come once a week to clean the bathrooms and kitchen. The counters sparkle and the house has a wonderful aroma of Mr. Clean. Aww… I usually clean with them, but this week I needed to run a few errands. So, I left them home alone.

Much to the cleaners’ surprise, my high school kids came home for lunch. Katelyn walked in when she heard them pilferaging through the cupboards, laughing, and yelling “cookies” (and other words in Spanish) as they devoured a sleeve of oreo cookies.

Upon the discovery of the kids, they threw the cookies in the cupboard, and slammed it shut.

We laughed and laughed as we heard the story about the cookie thieves. I hope they laughed too when I dropped the check off at her house with a sleeve of oreo cookies attached.

Easter

Mike is great at hiding all the Easter baskets. He takes pride in making sure they are very hard to find.


Grandpa and Grandma Brown always host a fabulous Easter dinner and Easter egg hunt.

In the lower left hand corner is a picture of the cutest little toddlers. Some are great grandchildren and another is a grandchild.

Grandma and Grandpa number eggs for each child. There are eight eggs per person to be found. If your number isn't on the egg, than you have to look in another place for your egg. The more difficult eggs to find are usually for the older grand kids. The kids still love it! There was a little complaining from a return missionary (we won't name names) about putting an age limit on the Easter egg hunt. It's only for high school age and under.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

An Apostle's Easter Thoughts on Christ

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Easter Baseball

What a joyous diversion the fans had at the Braves baseball game this morning. An Easter Bunny arrived with his basket in hand, bearing tasty treats for the team and fans. I'm not sure if an Easter Bunny should really wear a "Kiss" T-shirt; maybe it's a manly version of the Easter Bunny. Whatever the case, we all enjoyed the jubilant, celebratory parent.

The Braves dominated the mighty Titans in a double header. With a final score of 11 to 5. The day before, they beat the Highland Rams 18 to 2. Mike had a great game batting 5 for 6, with 5 RBI's

Spring Is Here

The weather may not be showing all the signs of spring, but spring is definitely here. Dance recitals are abundant; music recitals are plentiful; baseball is in full swing; and school performances are overflowing.

This weekend, Lizzy performed in the CAA’s Department of Contemporary Dance Masterpieces. She danced in the Charlie Chaplin dance, as well as the Botticelli “Goddesses”. It was a fabulous production!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Milestones

There is so much joy to be found as our family experiences many milestones this year. Ben was baptized; Lizzy will graduate from elementary school; Mike turned 16, begins to date and drive, and was ordained a priest; Kate will be graduating from High School; Meg and Quinn moved back; and Sarah will be getting married in May.

While these are happy and exciting times, my heart is aching. I miss the companionship and presence of my husband, and I know my kids do too. I never expected to be experiencing these milestones in my children’s lives alone. I expected to have a husband to laugh with, and talk with, and share in these memorable moments. My children expected to have a dad to experience these significant times with. Steve was going to be there to baptize Ben; cheer on Lizzy; ordain Mike; assist Kate with college applications; help Meg and Quinn move; and dance with Sarah at her wedding to the song Butterfly kisses.

We feel his presence at many of these events, it is real, and others feel it as well. It’s a tender mercy when we are able to feel him near. We are grateful to be able to feel of his presence. We know we will live with him again, but for now…..we miss him!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Addiction

Lately, I have been frequenting the gym. Yes, it might have something to do with the up-coming wedding. I’m not sure if three weeks of good work-outs before a wedding will make a difference, but it’s worth a shot. To reward myself for my gym attendance, on the way home, I stop by Pace’s Dairy Ann and get a large diet coke.

Today I traipsed through the doors, in my usual sweaty gym attire, hoping not to see anyone I knew to place my order. As I pleasantly requested my large dc, the cashier handed me my drink. “That was fast”, I said. “The boys saw you coming, and got your order ready,” she replied. “How sweet,” I answered.

I’m not sure whether to be flattered by the kindness, or embarrassed by my daily addiction.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Senior Prom


Kate was asked to Senior Prom by Brock Adams. He was very creative, and asked her to follow the yellow brick road (well really follow the yarn). We followed the yarn around the block. He had wrapped it around mailboxes so we couldn’t just pull the yarn to get to the answer. If anyone is thinking of knitting a bright yellow sweater, we have some yarn just for you.

Kate answered him by strategically placing red cups in the chain link over the freeway that spelled out "YES". Much to her surprise, the cups were changed by strangers to read "NO". Brock and his family were very surprised when they jumped in the family car to find the answer on the overpass. Oops!

Monday, April 11, 2011

Horray!

Meagan and Quinn moved back to Bountiful, and the peanut gallery is cheering. Ben and Lizzy were especially excited, jumping up and down, and screaming. Meg was kind enough to have a sleepover with them. They played board games, and watched movies until the wee hours of the morning. Of course I couldn't be happier to have all my kids back together again.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

California Baseball

The whole purpose of our Spring Break trip to California was to watch the Bountiful High School Baseball team battle some California baseball teams in a tournament. Some days consisted of solely watching baseball games. We managed to have a little fun (well maybe a lot) as well. It was nonstop fun in California.

The Braves didn’t win any games, but they played with all their heart, and gave some of the teams a good battle. Mike did great! He never struck out (he hasn’t all year) and batted around 600. He played short stop which is a new position to him. He has played second base since he was 8. Regardless of the newness, he was fabulous in the field as well.

Besides the baseball games, Coach Boog had planned several other great activities for the team. They attended a Dodger’s game; went to Disneyland; and watched a Pepperdine College baseball game, just to name a few. It was a great way to build cohesive relationships with team members.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Ruby's & Tatts

There are a few things that make young kids really happy. Two of them are Ruby’s Diner and getting fake tattoos. After a disappointing Braves baseball game, the kids and I went to Huntington Beach to have some fun.

We went to Ruby’s Diner on the pier for lunch. The food is always a winner, especially among the young ones. We were lucky enough to sit seaside, and view jumping dolphins out the window. We had a great time!

After lunch we shopped at the quaint little shops in Huntington Beach. While we were shopping we happened upon a tattoo artist (the fake kind of course). Lizzy got a flower tatt, and Ben a shark.

Happy kids = Happy mom.

Friday, April 8, 2011

Hotel Fun

Thanks to the Larsen's for letting us tag along with them this trip. We had a great time with them. Bob, is a breakfast man and researched quaint little breakfast estalibhments to try each morning. Molly made the observation that maybe we shouldn't tell people that asked at restaurants that we are from Utah. It looked a little suspious, two women, one man, and several children.

Lindsey was kind enough to entertain my munchkins. She even played cards with them in the hotel elevator. Yes, that's right, the elevator. Kids can think up the craziest things to do. I thought it was pretty clever, however, it didn't last long. I can only imagine why not.

The hotel had a basketball court that Ben spotted the minute we arrived. I had to laugh when a young 20 something year old shared the court with him. Ben took the higher hoop, and the young adult the lower one. I chuckled to myself when Ben was doing better on the higher hoop than the young man on the lower one.

The hotel also had an indoor swimming pool. There was an open exercise room that looked over the pool. I could exercise while the kids swam. I told them to scream loud if there were any predators. I occasionally looked over the balcony to make sure that weren't face down in the water. It made us all happy.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Disneyland.....Where Memories Begin

Let the adventure begin......Monday we spent 14 wonderful hours at Disneyland/California Adventure theme parks. We took the cute Larsen girl's with us, which made it extra fun. They have been to Disneyland about 5 times already this year. They definitely know the ins and outs of these parks. They had us hopping from one park to the other all day. We were grabbing fast passes, and snapping up tickets to the stunning water show, World of Color.


Thanks to our fabulous guides, we were able to ride every ride we wanted. The crowds were intense due to Spring Break, but we wouldn't be stopped.

We Went On Space Mountain And Lived To Tell About It! Ben, who is only eight, even went on it. He was real proud of himself, since 2 years ago when we came he wouldn't ride Space Mountain.

Although Ben rode several of the "scarier" rides, he is still a little boy. When we finished our boat tour on the Jungle Cruise ride he said, "Mom, do you think those animals were real." Aw, so cute! His childhood isn't completely over yet.

We finished the night with the dazzling World of Color water show. We felt the magic, and still believe that Disneyland is the happiest place on earth.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Food For Thought

Our flight to California for Spring Break was delayed an hour. Since I failed to check the status of our flight on-line, we were at the airport extra early. We were scheduled to fly out at 6, and didn’t leave until after 7. The kids were hungry so I bought them each a bagel, which they devoured.

The next morning we rushed out of the hotel, without breakfast, to get to our first Braves game on-time. The complaining began. “I am so hungry I think my kidney is going to eat my spleen,” whined Lizzy. “Kidney’s don’t eat spleens,” I informed her. “Yes, they do mom, I learned it at school. When your bodies are starved the organs start eating each other,” she demanded. “Your body isn’t starved, I gave you a bagel for dinner,” I barked. “Bagels don’t count for dinner,” she snapped.

“Did your teacher actually say that a kidney can eat a spleen”, I replied. “Well, I raised my hand and asked her if a body was starved, if your kidney could eat your spleen, and my teacher said, sure Lizzy.”

I asked her what tone her teacher used. As I listened, my faith in the education system,or maybe just her teacher, went up a notch.

Monday, April 4, 2011

The Farmer's Market

I always thought a Farmer’s Market was similar to this: Until I actually went to the famous Las Angeles Farmer’s Market and saw this: Best Farmer's Market I have ever been to.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Where In The World Am I?

I have asked myself this questions many times on this trip. Sometimes I feel like I am on another planet. See if you can figure out where we are by the pictures. #1 #2 #3

Picture #1 is Venice Beach - There was street entertainment; legal marijuana being sold; a freak show being advertised with the two headed turtles; piercings and tats sold at any corner; and goods sold at ridiculously low prices. We decided against the freak show for 3 dollars, since there were plenty of interesting things to see for free.

The beach was beautiful! I always love the beach, wherever I go.

Picture #2 is Santa Monica Pier - The pier had many attractions, Ferris wheel, carousel, aquarium, shopping, and people watching. It was a step up from Venice Beach.

Picture #3 is The Grove - This outdoor shopping mall is similar to the Gateway, but much more up-scale. It was very crowded, had lots of great shopping, and is located in Las Angles. You can take a double decker tram around through the center. There is also a dancing fountain that was patterned after the one at the Belliago in Las Vegas.

And why are we REALLY here in sunny California?

Bountiful High School BASEBALL Tournment!