Babies, Babies, and More Babies!

I have 14 grandchildren.  The oldest is 11, the youngest,  4 months. The grand babies usually come in threes or fours.  At the beginning of school, I'll have 1 in 6th grade, 3 in 3rd grade, 4 in 1st grade and 5 in various preschool stages. 

Now this is where the exciting part comes in! 

My daughter, Camille, had a baby girl in April.

(This was taken the night before she delivered)

What a joy this baby has been!  

Olivia Brook is well loved. 

She's now laughing, rolling over,

 gooing, and waiting patiently for her cousins to arrive!

Here are her cousins.  All in various stages of development but coming real soon! 

Chelsey's having a girl on August 20th.  This is her first. 

Nicole's due date is August 29th.  This is her first and it's a girl.

Candice is due September 21st.  She's having a boy.  This is her 6th. 

We will be overflowing with babies and love and lack of sleep!

But wait, that's not all!  

This little girl is Jeanette, my youngest daughter. She is due in February with her first!

And we thought the birth of the royal baby was exciting!  psh!

So, in case you're wondering where I'll be for the next month or so...I'll be in Grandma Heaven!

A Summer of Herpes

I know this sounds like a low-budget teen film but this has been my summer of Herpes Simplex keratitis, or in other words, Herpes of the ole eye-ball.  When it was told to my daughter, who works at Verizon and deals with apple products and apps, that I have eye-herpes, she wanted to know what kind of an app that was.  

So basically this is a cold sore virus in the eye.  Why this virus thought it would be a good idea to attack my eye, I'll never know, but I'm TIRED of it!  I"m "seeing" a corneal surgeon who has me putting drops in my eye 6 times a day and taking anti-viral pills. 

 I made this small so you don't have to look at it if you don't want. :)

Just in case you're thinking that a good herpes virus in the eye would be fun, I'll tell you what happens. This is basically a medical explanation that you will find on WebMD but much better. :)

It starts with an irritation of the eye that will turn your eye red, cause burning and light sensitivity.  It will be misdiagnosed as an irritated cornea or a scratched cornea. (Who is expecting herpes, for heavens sake?) Antibiotic drops will be prescribed and when you go back to the eye doctor, your eye is flaming red and your sight is blurry.  The eye doc will say, "Whoa!  Let's get you off these drops and try something else for a few days!"  In a few days, you'll go back to the office and it's the same...only worse.  By now, he realizes it could be herpes and he calls the corneal surgeon.  Then, because he's such a nice guy, and your vision has become very cloudy in that eye and it's hard to keep the eye open, he actually drives you to the corneal surgeon. (OK, this may not happen to you, but your eye doctor probably isn't as nice as mine and mine had met me in his office on his day off)  
Now, according to the websites about this condition, once you're on the regime of drops and pills, it will take 2 to 3 weeks for it to turn around and get better.  NOT!  I have been dealing with this since the end of June. A few weeks ago, it started to get better.  My eye wasn't as red, it was still a bit sensitive to light but my vision was starting to return.  Last week the virus returned with a vengeance!  
At this time, my cornea is swollen.  A normal cornea thickness is 540 nm.  Mine is 840. Because the herpes has attacked the cornea directly in the center, my vision is frosty.  The best way to explain it is to look in a mirror after having a hot shower and the mirror is steamy.  You can barely see an image in the mirror.  This is how I "see" out of the eye.  Now, imagine how it feels to have shampoo in your eye.  It burns, turns your eye red, and is hard to open. Yep, that's how I feel now. Oh yes, one more thing.  I can taste the eye drops after putting them in my eye.  They are yuk!  
So, think twice about getting this virus!  It stinks!

Now, the best way to deal with adversity of any kind, is to do service for others who have it worse that you.  This summer has not been fun.  The plans I had to go to Rexburg to see family or  have grand kids spend the night, or drive to go anywhere, have all been shot to heck.  I will admit, I have had a few pity parties.  However, I have a good friend who is suffering with cancer.  She is bed-ridden and is blind in her right eye because of a tumor.  When I go to her house, I realize that my problem is tiny compared to hers.  I can at least get out of bed and go about my semi-normal routine.

Lest you think I'm a cry baby who doesn't appreciate what I have, here are just a few things of which I am thankful:
My left eye!  It is awesome!!  No problem there.
I can still run (I have to be careful while crossing the street because my vision is gone on the right side, but running seems to make it feel better, as long as I run before the sun comes up)
My family (They have driven me places I need to go and they are generally good people)
My faith (I truly believe I will be healed, I'm just a bit impatient)
The rest of my body is OK 
Friends I have a friend who gave me this insulated lunch bag for my birthday. 

I'm excited to take it back to school and have it sitting in the faculty fridge. 

I could go on and on but these are just a few.

 I'm also thankful for this little Tyke!

Until this heals, I am your "One-Eyed Friend", signing off.

Better With Age

Some things get better with age; cheese, wine, (or so I've been told) paintings, and my Mom, Cleo.

We celebrated my Mother's 90th birthday, and what a celebration we had!  Even though I was accused of thinking this party was a wedding reception, we decorated the cultural hall in the church and filled it with people.

These people came with hugs, 

well wishes,

memories,

smiles,

songs,

and love, to honor this beautiful, gracious lady.

Mother and her younger sisters. 

Some people were OK having their picture taken.

 Others were not.

(I wonder what my Dad was trying to tell me.)

Happy Birthday, Mom!  We love you!

This was taken at the end of the day.  Half of my kids were gone. 

A Clear View of Forever

It's hard to believe that it has been a year since we held this sweet baby, kissed his soft, chubby cheeks, and had our heart melt when he smiled. 

Grady, we love you and miss you every day. 

Sue Anderson, a talented and gifted writer, wrote this poem for her friend.  When Grady passed away, she sent it to me. It brought comfort to us at the time and it expresses my feelings and beliefs.  Thank you, Sue.

A Clear View of Forever 

©2012 Susan Noyes Anderson

Grady, you came into this world

and made the living sweet.

Right from the start, you owned each heart.

Your smile was bliss, complete.

You rushed to earth…greeted us early…

left us far too soon.

In dark of night, you took your light

and slipped beyond the moon.

A loving Father called you home.

We bow to His command;

yet, though we know where you have flown,

it’s hard to understand.

Our empty arms are aching, and

we yearn to see your face.

Draw near us, please, in memories

that time cannot erase.

Remind us with each star that shines

that you shine brightly, too.

As our eyes watch the sunrise,

stir our souls to rise with you.

Watch over us, that we might feel

the brush of angel wings.

Let your laugh float on every note

the song of comfort sings.

You taught us more of heaven

than we ever hoped to learn;

and should our grief spar with belief,

through you, our hearts will turn.

Because of you, we’ll lift our heads

and stand a little higher.

To live God’s plan the best we can

is need now, not desire.

Your sacred gift to us is this:

a clear view of forever. 

The path to you glows straight and true.

One day, we’ll be together.

In that great day, these empty arms

will reach no more in vain.

God’s work fulfilled, our longing stilled,

we’ll hold you once again.

What started as a small project...

Have you ever started a project that turned out to be BIGGER than you thought it would? 

Last January, Andy and I went to a food storage class.  The presenter talked about her food storage room where she has everything organized.  Andy and I decided that we need to get our food storage, that was located in several different areas throughout the house and garage, organized into one room.  Since we are now "empty-nesters" we have the space to do it.  Andy drew up plans, got out his trusty tools, and with some great ideas in his head, set out to accomplish the task of organizing the food storage.

Let me show you what has been done.

One remodeled bathroom  

This needed to be done so the room on the other side of the bathroom could be better utilized since the original bathroom was oddly shaped. It's a good thing we did this.  As we were tearing out the shower, we discovered horrible, black mold! YUK! This house was built in 1972.  We've lived in it for 10 years. It's time to get things done! Andy completely gutted this room and rebuilt it. He even tiled the huge shower.  I hung up the towel and put the scale on the floor. 

Laundry room moved to the furnace room.  

This needed to be done because our new storage room is in the old laundry room. 

Andy put in a new window, sheet rocked and insulated the walls, made the folding table, covered the floor, etc.  I put the plants in the window and the fabric softener sheets on the dryer! :)

Office 

This is the room outside the bathroom.  Andy made the book shelves and the almost finished desk. He has done a beautiful job on every project he tackled.  I helped load the books in the book shelves.

You're probably wondering about the food storage room.  Well, we're working toward that.  Our food storage is still in several areas of the house and garage but it will be heavenly when "we" get it done!  Andy has discovered a new love...woodworking.  He has acquired a few new "tools" along the way that has made his projects go much more smoothly.

We'll eventually get to the reason we started this project but, until then, has anyone seen that #10 can of pinto beans?

Who helps write your story? Story@Home Giveaway (closed)

Everyone has a story to tell. What is your story?  Who knows your story?  How do you present your story?

My story began (or is it begins) many, many years ago.  These four women helped to shape it.

Our winner is Sandra Ricks!  Congratulations!

This is my Grandma Travis in the year, 1916, on the day she graduated from high school. I remember her as a hard-working, patient woman who loved her family.  I spent many days at her home, playing in the back yard with cousins, eating dill beans and other home-canned goods, and watching her sew beautiful quilts.

My Great-Grandma Olsen came to the United States from Switzerland when she was 7 years old. As an adult, she stood at 4'11", (obviously I didn't inherit her stature genes) and she would yodel at the family reunions, even when she was in her 90s! How I wish I could read her story and learn more about her conversion to a church that brought her and her family to America.

My Grandma Hansen, daughter to Grandma Olsen, was an elect lady who raised 10 children with dignity and grace.  She loved flowers and had two huge lilac trees and a garden full of irises in her back yard.  She baked some of the best breads, cakes, pies, and anything else that could come out of an oven.

My own dear Mother, Cleo, has been my biggest support and influence over the years.  She is an example of love, patience, understanding, encouragement, selflessness, wisdom and cooking skills. She has some great stories from her childhood days.  She will be celebrating her 90th birthday next month and I am so blessed to have her in my life.

I hope to be able to emulate these four wonderful women in my life.  I hope that my own children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren will know who I am and, through my story, gain an appreciation and understanding of themselves and their ancestors. 

You're probably wondering where I'm going with this...wonder no more.  I'm inviting you to one of the most amazing, fun, inspirational and informative conferences I've ever been to! Story@Home

I had the opportunity to attend this conference last year.  It was so fun!  I learned so much and was inspired to keep my journal and write my story.  Even though I stopped blogging shortly after the conference, (for reasons not associated with the conference :)), I have written my thoughts, activities and feelings almost daily. 

Story@Home will be held in conjunction with the RootsTech family history and technology conference in Salt Lake City, March 21-23, 2013.  If you're ready to become better at storytelling, or to learn how to do family history, this is an event you don't want to miss.  Tickets for the event are still available for just $79.00.

"No matter how you tell your stories – through your family history, at your child’s bedside, on your blog, or from a stage – your stories matter. Join us for Story@Home March 21-23, 2013, and experience a conference that will change the way you see your stories and the world, and help you connect in new ways with those you cherish most."

OK, are you ready for some exciting news?  I am able to give away one ticket to the full event. Just leave a comment below and your name will be entered in the drawing. 

Good luck!

Breaking the Ice

Hi!  My name is Connie.  I split Blogsville and became MIA without a goodbye, au revoir, or adios. I've been trying to figure out how to come back but my writer's block gets the best of me.

Do I go running in to the blog room with stories of alien abductions and African safaris?  

Do I drive up in a fancy car, head thrown back, acting as if I own the world?

Do I have a huge giveaway...

...Or a recipe of seaweed and kelp?

I think I'll just start by sitting back quietly and finding out what has been going on in your lives.  I'll be back here a little more often.  

In the meantime, I need to find the recipe for this delicious looking concoction!

Then and Now

As we posed for this picture, twenty years ago, we thought our family was "complete." Little did we know, we will never be complete.  Our family is constantly growing; we're adding, subtracting, and multiplying. (I should have been a math major)

As each year goes by and we enjoy new additions to our family (whether the additions be big or small) we experience lessons of love, joy, sorrow, laughter, tolerance, tears, and hope. 

Our "completeness" will take all eternity because we will keep changing and growing (more facial hair) and learning...

...and becoming more crazy!  

I love my family!

Bitter Sweet

It has been two months since Grady left us.

This beautiful head stone (a generous gift to his parents) is now in place.

It used to be, after holding Grady for a while, our arms would ache because he was so big!

Now our arms ache to hold him.

Soon, Grady, soon.