OK...I accept the challenge......

Jenn recently posted 100 things that we might or might not already know about her. She thinks it would be fun if everyone did. After thinking about it (I really don't know if I even know 100 things about myself), I have decided to list 100 things that I have "learned". I am old, and I have had many of the experiences that life offers, and I have learned a great deal. Therefore, I could share those. It might take me a few days and a few posts to get that all done. Because it might take a few days, I am going to group them into categories. Often in life we wear many hats. Daughter, wife, mother, friend, sister, student, grandmother, and career. Today I will start with "gramma" because that is the most fun. So, here we go......

1. Being a gramma is the most fun thing that I have ever done.
2. Watching your kids parent teaches you about what kind of parent you were.
3. Kids are born with their own unique human nature.
4. Bill is an amazing Papa. Whichever set of grandkids he is around, he goes right for the youngest one.
5. He is way more patient than I am with the babies.
6. It is fun to have the kids with their parents.
7. It is more fun to have the kids without their parents (and a lot more work).
8. Sometimes I feel guilty that I don't help more.
9. I am a little better about giving too much advice, but realize I still need work in this area.
10. I do not have all of the answers for all of the questions, and I don't need to.
11. I know that 99% of the time the kids don't want advice, they just need someone to listen.
12. I know that I need to improve in this area.
13. Bill and I bond better with the kids when their parents are not around.
14. We get closer to the kids that we tend the most.
15. I love being at the stage of life that we are at, but when I see our kids with their little ones, I miss being at that time of my life.
16. I wish that Bill and I had been at that time of life together.
17. I am sad that Bill and I didn't have any kids together.
18. Grand parenting with Bill is more special to me because we didn't parent little ones together.
19. Watching Bill be a grandpa helps me see what kind of dad he was...incredible.
20. Bill is a better Papa than I am a Gramma.

more to come.........

WE HAVE PROVED THAT WE CAN HAVE FUN ANYWHERE!!!

"Matts" and "Tate" enjoying nature....Don't you just LOVE it? We had a great adventure this week. Jenn, Kate, John, and I traveled south to meet Linds, Max, and Bandit in Kanab, Utah. We had a great trip down. We had to drop off groceries, pills, and a new wheelchair to OZ/IZ, so we started later than we would have liked. Nevertheless we arrived by five. We had reservations at the "Hotel from Heck". We had one queen size bed for all of us. Oh well. We still had fun. Max and Kate really had a great time getting reacquainted. They were best buddies. Kate thought that it was fun to dress Max, and he really didn't mind. They are adorable together. It is so much fun for me to watch them interact. They are certainly interested in each other. Jenn and Linds, thanks for the trip. Everyone was such a good sport. It is SO MUCH fun being a gramma. It is great to sit back and watch you guys do all the work. You are AWESOME mommies!! This trip does not count for an official girls' trip because everyone wasn't there. It will definitely make us appreciate the next one so much more. Maybe we should make the next one a road trip??? No, I don't think so........

Happy Fathers' Day Bill!!

We decided to celebrate Fathers' Day on Monday this year. We wanted to get together at the Maple Hills' pool. We had everybody there (that is still in Utah). It was so fun for Bill. He is so easy to please. We had KFC chicken and corn. The boys so love the corn on the cob on a stick. Bill just loves to be with the little ones. It was a beautiful sunny day. Our family is growing and growing. As soon as we get a new baby the one before suddenly looks like a giant. For a while Toryn had the princess spot, and now it is John. Very soon it will be Jeff and Brooke's new boy and Lindsay and Morgan's new girl. Tyler and Mariah took Toryn up to meet OZ and IZ. Everyone involved survived the visit. Bill and I feel so blessed to have so many wonderful kids, and little ones. We have a great family!! We truly do have so many blessings. You are all such wonderful parents. It is a joy to watch you.

Bill got great news today about his transplant. There was a one in six chance that Kelsey would be a match. Bill is harder to match because of his blood transfusion, BK Virus, and the first transplant. Anyway, today he got word that they are a match!! This is truly a miracle, and not a small one. Just a couple of more tests, and then we should know how the procedure will be done. Love you all....appreciate your love and concern!

The Chalk Art Festival

Last Saturday we went to the Chalk Art Festival at The Gateway. Kelsey is in charge of the entire event. She did a great job. We went in time to see the adoptive dads receive their awards. A dad is chosen from each region of the state. The Osmond sons were the presenters and performers. It was a lot of fun. We then went to a luncheon for sponsors and walked around and looked at the displays. It is amazing how many families sacrifice to take these kids into their homes. Utah Foster Care does a great work. I included a picture of the display that we sponsored. It is hard to see, but it is supposed to be Elton John playing the piano. You can see the piano and his arms, but not his face.

Youth Conference

This last week we were involved in our ward's youth conference. We remodeled an older home for an elderly couple. It started out small and grew and grew. New carpet and floors, totally new kitchen, paint everywhere, laundry room moved from downstairs to upstairs, new furniture, new landscaping, and many other improvements. It was an amazing experience. We really enjoyed it, and felt the joy of service. The youth did an incredible job. Every youth that was involved in that experience was changed because of it. They got to be there when the couple came home. They were such a sweet and grateful pair. Everyone was so amazed at how well the kids responded to learning the skills they needed to do the work. It was a powerful lesson about how important it is to make learning relevant. They were interested in learning about spackle and sanding because they had stuff to spackle and sand. Every one of them will look differently at the first house they buy. They will see things that can be fixed and will have the skills they need to do the fixin'! I thought it would be fun for you to see the finished product. Sorry I didn't take a "before" picture. The kids will be getting a CD with the before and after, and everything in between.

Nauvoo

NAUVOO

Liz and I enjoyed a fun trip to Nauvoo last weekend. We flew into Chicago and drove almost straight there. We spent parts of two days touring. We saw Brigham Young's home, Scovil Bakery, the Smith Family Cemetary, Trail of Hope, the blacksmith's shop, the visitor's center, the statue garden. We were able to do baptisms for the dead in the beautiful new temple. We attended church. We went to the show that the missionaries put on. We saw the sites where Smiths and Zundels owned property. One Zundel property was across the street from the Smith block. We even saw what could have been a Zundel OUTHOUSE!! We visited Carthage. That was very moving. We also spent the day in Chicago. We saw the temple there. It was stunning. We saw Lake Michigan and Michigan Avenue. We spent some time with Neil and Jeanne. It was a great trip. My favorite was the new statue at the temple. It is a life size bronze of Joseph and Hyrum on their horses. They are looking at the temple as the get ready to depart for Carthage. If you look closely at the picture on the slide show, you can see the Mississippi in the distance. It is spectacular. Maybe another girls' trip!!