The Early Years

Come with me on a little stroll down Memory Lane...

Rick & I have known each other since 2nd grade. We lived in the same neighborhood, attended the same Elementary School, and the same ward (church congregation).

Our Elementary School put on a school program every year, called the "Spring Festival".  When we were in 5th grade, our class was outside practicing for our part on the program.

Rick asked me to be his girlfriend...

We broke up later that day.

In 6th grade, he asked me to dance with him at a school dance, and I told him NO!

I guess you could say we had a bit of a rocky start!

During our Senior year in High School, we had almost every class together.

Toward the end of Senior year, we got to be really great friends.

He was dating one of my friends and I went out with one of his friends.

Then he asked me out...

Our first date

We went to dinner at The Coachman's Restaurant in Provo.

Then we went for a round of miniature golf at Trafalga.

While we were on our first date, he asked me out to the Senior Dinner Dance at school.

 Our 2nd Date: The Senior Dinner Dance

I'm still thinking were "just friends".

But we kept dating.

And that friendship just kept getting better and better.

Over the summer, we dated other people too, but by the end of the summer we had had enough of that.

The deal was pretty much sealed by then.

And after almost 6 months of dating, he finally kissed me!

(Can you believe that?)

 Another school dance picture. Senior Ball, the winter after we graduated.

We got engaged on my birthday, February 1985.



 Dance picture from Sweetheart's Dance shortly after we were engaged. I was taking classes at what is now UVU.

  A year later: This is our engagement photo

(cringe)

I would love to do the photos from our engagement & wedding over! 

 (Oh my heck~ enough with the mullet and the big glasses, already!)

Gotta love the 80's!

And a year and a half later...

Our first family picture!

Happy 26th Anniversary to my forever BEST FRIEND! 

Preference 2010

Wedding Day

A few pics from the wedding.  It was a beautiful day!

Curtis and Shae

October 8th, 2010

Manti Utah Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints



 Shae's Family

 The siblings



 Shae & her dad

(Later, she danced with her dad to the song, "Stealing Cinderella", by Chuck Wicks)



First dance: "When You Love a Woman" by Journey

No commentary from me.  Everything I wrote just couldn't express the joy of the day.  I think the pictures speak for themselves. 

Back to School~2010

The boys started back to school this week! 

It's been a bit of a funky summer for us~ so I wasn't quite ready for Summer Break to be over...

Until the last 2 weeks...at which point I was seriously considering sending both of them to Boarding School. 

(I know they look all nice and innocent in this picture, do not be fooled!)

Spencer started High School this year.  He was a bit nervous, though he wouldn't admit it.  Nervous = Ornery at our house.  Ornery kids make for an ornery mom.  Just sayin'.  There has been a lot of weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth...and that was just me!

We spent several days at the HS getting registration completed.  I went to Sophomore orientation with him.  It was mostly a big pep rally.

He doesn't know the school song yet, so I've been having lots of fun singing my school song.

Last night, I was singing to them (which was not appreciated) and we were laughing about this story:

When Emily was in 9th grade, Spanish Fork HS was playing Payson HS (my Alma mater).  She and some friends were going to the game...she liked to talk about how "way better" her school was than mine! 

Imagine her surprise when she came home from school with her friends, and I had green posters on the front door and all over the house!  "Lion's Rule, Don's Drool",  "Lion Pride" etc.  I also had painted a green lion's paw on my cheek!  Had to show my school spirit!!!  We laugh about it now, but at the time she was not happy with me! 

The highlight of the afternoon was when I delighted them by singing my school fight song!

"We are a band of soldiers true,

Our armor is the strength of youth!

Our weapons are not muskets blue,

But shining darts of thought and truth, and truth.

Our enemy is ignorance,

A strong and sullen foe.

But with increasing diligence,

To victory we will surely go!

We are marching, we are marching,

We are marching on to victory every day!

Come and join us, come and join us,

Come and help us put the battle in array. ARRAY!

We will conquer, we will conquer,

Though our foe's the worst the world has ever seen!

Our war cry is the school,

Our hope's the Golden Rule.

And our colors are the silver and the green!" 

Do you remember your HS fight song? 

(P.S. Emily...Lions are still way better than Dons!)

See the expression on this boy's face?  I think it pretty much sums up the last 2 weeks around here!  Did I mention everyone has been pretty ornery?   

Shane is a 4th grader this year.  I seem to remember being much older in 4th grade!  These 4th graders all look pretty young to me!

This may be a forced smile.  He is much happier now that he has a couple days under his belt.  He was nervous to go back to school too! Nervous = Ornery...right?  Right!!! 

Happy Back to School Week!

Addition

One boy,

One girl,

Two hearts beating wildly,

To put it mildly,

It was love at first sight.

He smiled,

She smiled,

And they knew right away,

This was the day they'd been waiting for all their lives.

For a moment the whole world revolved

Around one boy and one girl.

Curtis and Shae are engaged!

Fajita Nachos

When we lived in Arizona, we loved to get Fajita Nachos at Abuelo's Restaurant.  YUMMY!!!

They are pretty easy to recreate at home.

Tostada Shells

Cooked, Shredded meat (beef, chicken or pork)

Diced Onion

Diced Green Chilies

Shredded Cheese

Sour Cream

Optional Toppings: Sliced Jalapenos, Guacamole, Olives, Pica de Gallo

Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.  Arrange tostada shells on baking sheet and top with meat, onions, green chilies and shredded cheese.

Bake @350 degrees for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and toppings are heated through.

Serve topped with sour cream and other toppings of your choice. 

My notes: These are really, really good made with leftover Kalua Pork. 

Or with this Pulled Pork.  (My family didn't care for the pulled pork, but it was indescribably good on the nachos!)

These are super easy to throw together if you have leftover meat from another meal. 

We had a little Kalua Pork left over from a recent family event.  Curtis received the

 Melchizedek Priesthood. 

It was a great day!!!

When We Meet Again

Rewind! Mid-July, 2005…

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon...just a few days earlier, Rick had received an offer for a promotion at work, which involved a transfer to Arizona. We had accepted. Now, I found myself sitting in Relief Society next to Connie. It would be (unbeknownst to any of us) my last time attending church in that ward. Ever. I was serving in the RS at the time. The YW were conducting Opening Exercises, which was good for me because no way was I gonna be able to sit up in front of that room full of women and not bawl my eyes out! The word that we were moving had not gotten around quite yet…Opening Exercises went well, until the girls practiced a song they would be singing at upcoming Girl’s Camp. My daughter was a soloist. Despite the personal turmoil that she was going through, she sang beautifully. But, the words to the song pierced my heart and the tears flowed.

When We Meet Again

Jenny Phillips/Tyler Castleton

My feet are tired and worn

My spirit fades

Many fall by the way

Keep my feet this day

Walk one more mile or so

Stay close to me

My faith will be my fate

My destiny

I will rise and prove my faith

May my heart be one with Yours

So You will one day

Call me friend

When we meet again

Though trials may mark my path

And storms prevail

I know Your guiding love

Will never fail

If I endure it well

If I remain

True to the promises

And faithful to His name

Afterward, the Relief Society Presidency gathered for a few pictures.

Here we are!

Connie, Darla, Valerie, Emma

Fast Forward! October, 2009...

I once again find myself living in Utah…an unexpected, but welcome change of events! (Another transfer for Rick, back to the SLC office).

A lot has happened to all of us over the past 4 years. Some joys, some sorrows…Life is like that. I feel so blessed and fortunate to have good friends who have loved, supported, encouraged, laughed and cried with me. And I hope that in some measure, I have returned in kind to them…

There was an email, then a phone call, an invitation to join. Thanks to thoughtful, wonderful friends who gave me a little nudge!

Here we are!

Emma, Connie, Valerie, Darla, Lynette

We met for breakfast on Halloween. We dressed up in costume (in case it wasn't obvious...and please ignore my hair! Despite what my stylist says, side-swept bangs do not work for me!)

It was fun and wonderful and all good things rolled in to one! And it felt like I’d never been gone! And how wonderful it feels to be back home!

I will rise and prove my faith

May my heart be one with Yours

So You will one day

Call me friend

When we meet again

Love you guys!

What a Difference 50 Years Makes!

Rick's parents celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary in October.


We had a wonderful family celebration to honor them.
Almost all of the family were able to attend. We have family in California, Montana & Utah, so it was great that we could all get together.

Then: October 14, 1959

And today:
They are the parents of 7 children, 5 boys and 2 girls.
They have 5 daughters-in-law and 1 son-in-law.
They have 26 living grandchildren, 1 deceased grandson, 1 grandson-in-law and
1 great grandchild.

All Because Two People Fell in Love!

Happy 50th Anniversary!

50 Years Ago...

* "The Sound of Music" opens on Broadway

* Barbie makes her debut

* Alaska becomes the 49th State, and Hawaii the 50th

* "Bonanza" premieres on NBC, and is the first weekly broadcast completely in color

* Doris Day, Frank Sinatra, Connie Francis, Jim Reeves & Ella Fitzgerald are popular singers

* "Ben Hur" & "Some Like it Hot" are popular movies

* Dwight D. Eisenhower is President of the United States

* A gallon of gas costs 25 cents

* A loaf of bread costs 20 cents

And on August 28, 1959...
My parents were married!




Per their wishes, we celebrated simply, with a family dinner. We had lots of good food, a few laughs and shared lots of memories.

I happened to have their wedding cake topper, and was able to fix it up and use it on the cake.



It was a wonderful day, and a wonderful event to celebrate.

Happy 50th Anniversary Mom & Dad!

(For more 1959 trivia, click Here)

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Last week, my mom celebrated her 71st birthday.

I don't have a good, current picture of her, so this is one from about 7 years ago.

My mom loves to read. It's a passion she passed on to me.

Anytime we went on a trip, even if it was just for a day or two...she would find a thrift store or used book shop to search through. She always would come away with lots of treasures. She used to bring the books home and bake them in the oven (seriously) to get rid of any germs or smells. Not sure if it worked or not, but she does have a lot of old, used books. :)

One of my favorite books, "The Rosary", is such a find. And I am certain it "did time" baking in the oven.

One of my favorite childhood memories is of staying up late on a summer evening, reading with my mom. In my mind's eye, I can still see her curled up in the swivel rocker, engrossed in her book. I can still remember looking up and seeing the white, sheer curtains blowing in the summer night breeze, hearing the crickets chirp outside the window, and being curled up on the couch enjoying being able to stay up so late, reading. I even remember the book I was reading; "The Endless Steppe" by Esther Hautzig.

We also did a lot of camping when I was a kid. I think mom owned all of the "Roughing It Easy" books by Dian Thomas, and she always had something new and fun for us to try; Banana Boats, Tin-foil Dinners and lots of other goodies. We always had a fun time together.

Whenever mom is trying to tell a joke, or recount a funny experience, well...she gets laughing so hard that no one can understand a word she is saying...she just starts squeaking and laughing! And the harder she tries to stop, the more she gets to laughing, until everyone is laughing, yet we still have no clue what the "funny thing" was...her attempt at telling is always the funny part. In fact, whenever she starts to share something humorous, my dad usually says, "Here she goes again" because he knows what's coming...

My mom is very organized...and she is always on time! She and my dad always show up 15-20 minutes early to everything. I don't think she has ever been late a day in her life.

She also has always been a 100% Visiting Teacher. Nothing keeps her from getting her VT done every month (early too, of course). Sadly, this is NOT a trait she passed on to me. I think the only time she may have missed a month was when Curtis was in the hospital after his car accident.

Thanks for a lifetime, of warm, wonderful, happy memories (and lots of wonderful books!)

I love you mom! Happy Birthday

19!

Happy Birthday, Emily!
19 years ago, you made your debut...Although it seems like just yesterday that you were a cute, spunky little girl...you have grown into a beautiful young woman. (Still cute and spunky!)

Here are a 19 fun, random facts about Em.

She loves music and loves to sing.

She also can play the piano and the violin.

She loves her friends and is kind, thoughtful and loyal.

She is a daddy's girl.

She loves the San Diego Temple:


Her favorite food is Chicken Broccoli Casserole.

Her favorite colors are RED and TURQUOISE. (Not necessarily together).

She loves Orca Whales. Last time we went to Sea World, she cried when "Shamu" made an appearance.



When she was little, she wanted to be a teacher and a hair stylist.

When she was 2, she fell out of her 2nd story bedroom window, but thankfully was unharmed.

She loves football, and Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are her favorite team.

She likes to cook & is pretty good at it. (Don't ask her to sew anything, though!)

She is the only girl in our family. (Well, besides me!)
She is also the only granddaughter on my side of the family.

She is the 2nd oldest of our children, and has 3 brothers.

Her favorite movies are: "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" and "Pirates of the Caribbean"

She has always been happy and cheerful. She has a good sense of humor and loves to have fun.

She does not like "hick" music, so her dad loves to torture her with it on long road trips!

Never leave a drink unattended around Emily. She is sure to add a special ingredient, usually vinegar or lemon juice.

"If You Could Hie to Kolob" is one of her favorite hymns.


We love you, Emily. Have a wonderful, happy, exciting 19th birthday!

( Emily and Spencer earlier this year)