Great-Grandma Welker

Jason's grandmother passed away this week. Of all of our grandparents, she was the one the kids knew best of all. For a while, she lived in a nice trailer next to Jason's parents house. This afforded her some independence, but she was still close enough to get some extra help. We made it a point to take our kids over during every trip so that our kids could say hello.

Right about the time that Lucy was born, the signs of dementia started setting in. She could remember her past and our older kids, but Lucy never became embedded in her memory. You could tell that was a great source of frustration for her, that she knew she should know Lucy's name, but had to ask every time.

Randy, of course, took it hard. However, since my grandmother's funeral in the spring, he understands a little bit more about the Atonement. He asked if she was "in her tomb yet." We told him that Jason would be going to her funeral, and that she wouldn't be buried until then. He wanted to clarify that Jesus could "take her out of the tomb, right?" and wanted to know when her resurrection would occur. Although, we couldn't answer that specific question, he was satisfied with our testimonies that our grandmothers, and all of us, would one day be resurrected. I'm so grateful that we can comfort him with that knowledge, and that he has a the beginnings of a testimony of our Savior's sacrifice.

I'll always remember her a strong woman. Even at the end, when her mind and body were frail, her heart was strong. I admire her for ability to endure hardships- physically and emotionally. I'm also thankful for the example of Jason's parents, who have sacrificed so much and so long to care for her. She is loved and will be missed. But I know she is in a far better place and am so thankful for that knowledge.

Yeah . . . I'm showing off . . .

. . . again.

These are my latest projects. (Actually, crochet is just my excuse to watch TV.)

All of my kids know have afghans of their own. This is Randy's.

After I fell in love with crochet, I found amigurumi- or "crocheted stuffed doll." There are tons of free patterns on-line and now all of the kids have one of their own. I finished Randy's elephant on our road trip to my grandmother's funeral. He couldn't find it for a picture, but he's holding it in his hand in the last picture of this post. "Sam" can always be found when Randy really needs him.

I made a "Flixie" for Emily. This is a character from the book that she is writing. A flixie is a fairy with a cat's body. You can't tell in this picture, but the flixie I made has wings and a sparkly black dress. Tyler wanted a dog and I was surprised that a 14-year-old still wanted a stuffed animal from his mom.

Lucy still loves her giraffe- Leafy. This was the first amigurumi I'd made and I can see tons of mistakes. Thankfully, she loves him in spite of his faults.

My next project is something for me. And Jason has already put in his order for his own blanket. I'm going to be one of those little old ladies who dies with a closet full of yarn.

Another Last First

As far as I'm concerned, Lucy is our last child. So her firsts are the last ones I'll experience as a mother. Last night, she lost her first tooth. It was really hard to get her to sit still for a picture. This is the best we could do. This is a part of a game she invented- a very Lucy thing to do.

The story of her tooth is very Lucy also- pure drama. It had been wiggly for a while and it looked like it was getting close to coming out, but not quite there. However, while I brushed her teeth, that thing popped out and started gushing that red stuff that rhymes with mud. None of my other kids' teeth have bled like that. I must have had a look of shock on my face, because she looked in the mirror. Her chin was covered with blood and when she saw that, she flipped out. All the while, I'm cheerfully chattering, "Look your tooth fell out! How cool is that?" Apparently, not very cool.

We finally got her calmed down and into bed. She wanted to the Tooth Fairy to come, but didn't seem that excited about it. Jason sent a "reminder" alarm to make sure the Tooth Fairy didn't forget to come. He went upstairs to "check," if you know what I mean. But the next morning, a crestfallen Lucy came down-stairs with her tooth in a baggie. "She didn't come." Randy was quick to console her. "That's OK, Lucy. If the Tooth Fairy forgets, she brings extra money for each day she was late." He knows from experience.

I took her hand and we went upstairs to look. Under her pillow was two dollar bills. Lucy is now converted. She's counting her teeth and multiplying by two. I think she's also trying to figure out how to hide it from the Tooth Fairy in the hopes of collecting a little interest.

More Pearls

From a real "gem"- Sis. Marjorie Pay Hinckley

"I don't want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully, tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed with long, perfectly manicured fingernails. I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp. I want to be there with grass stains on my shoes from mowing Sis. Schenck's lawn. I want to be there with a smudge of peanut butter on my shirt from making sandwiches for a sick neighbor's children. I want to be there with a little dirt under my fingernails from helping to weed someone's garden. I want to be there with children's sticky kisses on my cheeks and tears of a friend on my shoulder. I want the Lord to know I was really here and that I really lived."

What My Kids Learned from the President of the United States of America

(This is in no way a political post. I will not get into the details of whether or not the President should or should not be addressing America's children the day before he addresses both houses of Congress. Just wanted to share our discussion at the dinner table.)

While dishing dinner out tonight, I asked each of the kids what was the best thing that happened today. Emily said that she got to miss the President's speech by going to a doctor's appointment. Randy perked up and he said that he listened to the President's speech. I had read the contents of the speech earlier and was curious to see what he had picked up. Randy answered,"If I don't learn, I get kicked out of the country."

Lucy chimed in that she saw "Brock O. Bama." When we asked her what she learned, she said, "Um, I learned that the United States is really real."

So, there you go, America. That's what your children got out of your President's big speech.

Happy Mother's Day

Fourteen years ago, Tyler was born into our family. Even after all these years, I marvel that I am a mother. Even more, I marvel that such amazing children were sent to our family. I've spent the morning thinking about Ty as a baby, as a little boy and now as a young man.

Never, in the history of mankind, was there a baby as cute as Tyler- until Emily, then Randy and of course, Lucy came along. We would get stopped in public and everyone would want to touch his "baby mohawk," the fluffy hair that could not and would not be tamed. Just before his first birthday, we showed up for extended family pictures with his hair slicked back and neat. My family had a fit. It just wasn't "him." Maybe that's why he wants to keep his hair so short now, because it was a big attention-grabber when he was little.

When I had my first parent/teacher conference during Tyler's preschool years, his teacher told me that she had never met a four-year-old child, much less a boy, that was as empathetic and considerate of his class-mates as my son. He is still extremely concerned about how others feel. Even though he has a core set of best buddies, he often invites kids from school and church over to our house that don't often get included in other's groups. I'm grateful that he has kept that empathy and I think that trait will bless him in the future.

Tyler has always been extremely bright. In elementary school, he would often ask me complicated scientific questions. My answer was always, "I don't know. Ask your dad." He loved sitting next to his dad at the dinner table discussing math and physics- stuff that was way over my head. One day when he was about 10, as we were driving in the car, he told Emily all about "splitting atoms" and causing nuclear reactions that would result in catastrophic explosions. Amused, I listened to his explanation, marveling at how much he knew. Emily was skeptical. "Mom," she asked. "Is Tyler telling the truth?" I told her that with the tiny bit of nuclear physics I knew, it sounded like he had the right idea. Her eyes grew wide and she said, "Well, I hope we don't accidently break any atoms."

Like every teen-ager I've ever known, Ty has struggled a bit in the transition from elementary to junior high school. However, I'm marveling at the difference a year can make and about how mature this fourteen-year-old Tyler is. As he left for school this morning, he came back into the house for one more hug and to tell me that he loved me. I hugged him back and kissed the top of his head, and wondered how much longer it would be that I would be able to do that. Will he ever outgrow the need for his mom's hugs? Will he outgrow me physically? Emotionally? Spiritually? I can't think about the answer to those questions for very long. Of course, my deepest desire is that Ty grows and matures into a responsible adult that might not need his mother's security and strength. But for now, I'm grateful he does. And I'll hold onto that as long as I can.

Happy Birthday, Tyler!

I love you!

Pearls

One of the best parts of teaching early morning Seminary is what I learn while preparing to teach. (The hardest part of teaching early morning Seminary is that it occurs early in the morning!) Periodically, I come across perfect pearls of wisdom and knowledge. Periodically, I'll share them with you.

Elder Neal A. Maxwell: "The most important question in human history is one which echoes down through the corridors of time; it will not go away: 'Jesus asked them . . . what think ye of Christ?' (Matt. 22:41-42) Sooner or later, this will be the vital question for all mortals, including you, my friends! A failure to answer this question is an answer." (Ensign June 1985, p. 69)