Family Matters

Just Being Jade

2009-08-05T11:32:00.000-07:00

Jade was so funny this day. She tried to use my rubber band to do leg lifts, like I showed her, but then she quickly got bored and her true nature took over. As you can see it took some doing, but she managed to turn my exercise bands into fashion accessories! (Carol Tuttle would love watching Jade always be her true-self!)

Sweet Summer

2009-08-05T07:07:00.000-07:00

Somethings never change. Like I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE summer! And this summer's turning out to be one of the best yet because it's been filled with lots of family, sun, and fun!

I started off by taking a trip to Savannah with Ashlee to meet Hayden (and spend time Preson, Rhianne and Trigger!)

Craig gave Elise a lesson in building when we helped Danny (& Karen) put siding on a shed.

I took a car trip to Grandma Shurtz's with Britney, Jaxon and Jade

Aubrey wanted to have a tea party for her 34th birthday so we went to the Beehive House Tea Room. The girls loved it more than I did. But still, it was fun to be with them.

Elise and Rachel are as much fun as they are cute!

Elise showing off her funky style

Craig wanted to go to a Bee's game for his birthday

For some reason that I don't understand, he thinks ball games are quite fun.
The best thing about them for me, is hanging out with my family.

On July 24th, we went to the "This Is The Place" pioneer park
and revisited the house Craig and I got married in

Brandi brought Jaxon and Jade to visit often on the way to their dads

Gabriel is a cute little joy

I love this picture of Aubrey and me both smiling

The little kids camped out in Grandma and Grandpa Shurtz's
backyard to celebrate the 4th of July

It was hot but Gabriel chilled inside

We ate dinner at the school with all the Gunnison folks

Grandma Shurtz bonded with Jade

We all love having Seth in our family

Mom and me with Aubrey and her girls

Aubrey's kids

Ashlee, Brandi, me and my mom

Another forth generation picture with Brandi

Cole scowled a lot this weekend so I was happy to get a picture of him with a smile!

Being a grandma sure is fun

My cute girsl!

I think this picture of grandpa and Ashlee is priceless

Out of the blue, I got invited to go to Lake Powell - and I made money to boot!

This July I got to see a lot more fireworks than usual...

And I repeatedly counted my MANY blessings and thanked God for them!

The best part about this summer is there's still a month or more left!

Britney Before

2009-06-22T15:48:00.000-07:00

I love these candid pictures of Britney a lot more than she does. But, since this is my blog and I have enough skills to post them without her help, I win and they're on here!

Britney at 12

2009-06-22T15:19:00.001-07:00

I took these pictures of Britney so she could put them on her blog.
I think they're so cute! (I'm just wondering how she grew up so
fast...) I had a good time with Britney this day. She came in the
afternoon and we worked on her blog, then went to the movie
(17 again), and then she spent the night. Once again, I am
reminded how much I love being a grandma!

Last Week in Savannah

2009-06-22T09:29:00.001-07:00

After Ashlee left we mostly hung around the house and
watched Preston get his gear ready for a two-week
training mission in preparation for Afghanistan. I loved
seeing how patient and gentle Preston is with Hayden.
One thing is certain, Hayden is a very lucky little boy
because both Preston and Rhianne are both stellar parents!
On Monday Rhianne and I went to Hilton Head. It was
beautiful there and Hayden was sooo good! Tuesday we
went to the pool and I soaked up all the sun I could because
I knew Utah would be cold and rainy when I got home!
During my last week I took lots of pictures of Hayden and
was happy for a digital camera, photobucket, and blogging!
I also got a shot of the hot pink roses and orange daylillies
blooming in front of Preston and Rhianne's house... and
the palm trees by the driveway... Part of me was ready to
come home, and another part of me wanted to stay in the extreme green and sun and keep on hugging and kissing Hayden!

A Day in The Life of Hayden @ 7 weeks

2009-06-22T06:46:00.000-07:00

Hayden loves bath-time - it's a great way to start the day!

Getting lots of hugs and kisses makes getting dried off more enjoyable.

Now that Hayden's bathed and dressed, he naps so mom can get ready too.

Still sleeping but it's time to go, so into his car seat he goes...

Waking up and starting to smile... Oh Boy! We're driving!
Hayden loves going places in the car!!!

Patiently waiting in the car with mom...

Hayden's in a very happy mood...

There are lots of things to smile, wave, coo and goo about...

Seeing downtown Savannah from a new point of view...

More hugs and kisses...

Then back in the car seat he goes.

While mom drives, Hayden loves smiling at himself in his own little mirror!

It's lunch time so mom eats while Hayden takes a nap.

Still sleeping, but now that mom's full it's about time to wake up...

Awake and smiling again after lunch and a diaper change!

Posing for a Hilton Head picture with Grandma Connie.

At the outlet mall, Hayden's in his stroller and mom's headed towards the stores.

Learning early that boy's have to wait and be patient while girls shop...

Starting to get hungry again, but patiently taking in the Gap
while mommy tries on clothes.

Feeling content after mom took a feeding break in the dressing room.
Just before majorly spitting up on Grandma!

Finally done shopping and ready to go home, after a change of everything! Good thing mommy brought a changing pad and plenty of spares. (She knew her Coach diaper bag would come in handy!)

At home, Hayden likes watching mom open the mail.

Then it's time for bed after an exciting day.

It's always good to get rocked to sleep at night.

Ah Oh. In the morning Trigger's on the bed with Hayden and mommy... that means daddy must not be around!

Looking around... wonder what's going to happen today?

Being adorable and smiling at mommy!

What was that??? Hayden's not quite sure what he thinks about Trigger giving him a good-morning kiss...

Oh well... maybe it means it's time for another bath :)

Easter with Aubrey's Kids

2009-06-20T22:58:00.000-07:00

This year we all went to Tooele and spent the day with Craig's
mom. On the drive out everyone was calm and mannerly,
but thanks to too much caffeinated soda, sugar and video
games, the drive home was an entirely different story. Even
though this slide-show is in the reverse order, it's still easy to
see that by the time the day was done Savannah and Sabrina
were exhausted, Tristan and Preston were irritated, and
Clayton, Chandler and Cole were WIRED! As for me... I had
such a massive headache that I further swore off having
sugar etc. in my house!!!

Jaxon and Jade

2009-06-20T21:51:00.000-07:00

When Brandi picked me up from the airport I got to spend some time with Jaxon and Jade. After I gave them each a quarter to let me take their pictures, Jaxon became very cooperative! Jade on the other hand got grumpier as the day went on.

Hayden @ 6 weeks

2009-06-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

I enjoyed getting to know Hayden at this age.
Even though he is small, he has a big personality!

Gabriel

2009-06-14T12:44:00.000-07:00

Gabriel Alexander, Aubrey's eighth baby, was born May 1st (four days after Hayden). As you can see, Gabriel is adorable. These real-life pictures were taken the same day Aubrey took him to get fancy pic's taken. The posed pictures are nice, but still, I prefer mine.

Aubrey's got her hands full but her kids are all so great I don't know which one she could do without!

I'm excited to spend more time with Gabriel and get to know him the way I've gotten to know Hayden. It would be very helpful if Aubrey and Trent would move to some exotic city, which would greatly tempt me to come for a long visit :)

Bee's Game

2009-06-14T10:43:00.000-07:00

Craig's always wanted to take the girls to New York for a Yankee's game. When it didn't happen while we lived in Virginia, he decided to take them to a Bee's game.

We bought a ticket for Anna but she couldn't make it so Clayton came along. He loved the game. I haven't been to a ball game for about 20 years and it didn't take me long to note that my level of enthusiasm is about the same (not much).

For me the best thing about the game was spending time with my family and watching them enjoy the game (the girls really did like it).

Also it was a beautiful night in Utah, and I thought the team looked nice in their pink (for breast cancer) jerseys.

The highlight of the evening was when Craig scrambled for the ball that landed behind his seat, and got it. Thank goodness Emma is flexible and a good sport because she got tossed off Craig's lap when he quickly lunged up for the ball!

My Dad - What a Guy!

2009-06-13T10:08:00.000-07:00

My dad is absolutely pErfeCt. He is and always has been, a kind, strong man who's set a good example for his posterity to follow.

Lately, I've been doing a lot of fond thinking about my dad. Maybe it's because Father's Day is just around the corner and my dad's influence has been so strong that in one way or another, I am reminded of him almost every day.

Everyone likes my dad because he’s truly good, kind, and generous at heart. Many times I’ve seen him selflessly go out of his way to help others who were in need. Two incidences in particular come to mind. One spring my dad noticed that his neighbor hadn’t planted purple petunias as she usually did. When he asked Teresa about it she told him money was tight that year so she wasn't going to plant any. Mom and dad weren’t exactly flush that year either, but my dad bought a flat of purple petunias anyway and left them sitting on Teresa's porch. And of course, when she tried to thank him he innocently claimed he knew nothing about them.

Another year, I was living in Alpine about a half mile from my parents home and my dad worked out of town. After each trip, one of the first things he did was come to my house to say hi and check up on me and my kids. On this particular day he came early in the morning after driving all night. As he left he said he couldn’t wait to go home and take a nap because he was beat! A couple of hours later I was driving down the road and was surprised to see my dad painting a fence in the hot summer sun. When I stopped and asked him about it (and reminded him that he was badly in need of a nap), my dad smiled and told me he’d seen Bob getting out his paint and thought “if it were me painting that fence, I’d like some help”. And then he changed his clothes and cheerfully went back to help Bob paint his fence.

My heat proudly swelled, and I thought "That's my dad!".

In a quiet but very predictable manner, my dad has always taught me what is right. Without a doubt, he is a REAL MAN!

THESE ARE SOME THINGS I'VE LEARNED ABOUT MY DAD...

Do you think it's possible to have a more efficient and organized garden than this?

Dad’s QUIRKY in a cute and lovable way. Plain and simple, he's a neat freak. Everything in his world has a place and it drives him crazy if things aren’t just so - even the food on his plate. It seems that dad’s passed on his “it has to be perfectly so, or I’m miserable” gene to his grand kids, namely Aubrey, Brandi, Travis, Ashlee and Preston! They all have it in some form or another. I too have been affected, but the older I get, the more my own "laid-back and relaxed, it doesn't matter" gene dominates, and that, in and of itself, makes my dad nuts when he’s around me for very long! But still, no matter how much my lackadaisical and free-spirited ways irritate him, I've never doubted that my dad totally loves me!!!

Dad's useful new garden sink is evidence of his handiness and creativeness. It has a convenient tap and hose for mom on the side!

Dad's great at building and fixing things. He's salvaged many "headed for the dump" items and turned them into beautiful and functional pieces. He's built small chests for Aubrey and Brandi (Ashlee's still wishing and hoping for hers...), and he's often re-furbished and fixed-up old "treasures" for me. Dad's also very good at taking orders from mom (well, sort of) and turning her dreams into beautiful realities. My dad is truly handy man to have around. Mom says she doesn't need a maid because he's always cleaning up to release his nervous energy. He's quite proficient and meticulous at cleaning.

Dad's always at his best when he's out in his garden!

Dad LOVES to grow things. He taught me at an early age that plants like music and grow better when people love them. He’s the best and most generous gardener I know. Not only does he grow food for other people, he often delivers it to them too! When we were kids, dad often filled a wagon with produce and sent Karen, Mark and I around to deliver it to all the old people in the neighborhood! It goes without saying that my dad has the “neatest” and most organized garden I’ve ever seen. When he heard of someone else's outdoor sink he thought it would good to have one too. So, within a short amount of time he'd salvaged some "throw away items" and built a very nice and functional outdoor sink for next to nothing. Both mom and dad are amazingly creative, and they're pros at finding good deals and stretching dimes into a dollars!! Absolutely, they have always been very good stewards over what God's blessed them with.

A familiar and much beloved site - my dad picking me a bag of big tomatoes to take home.

Dad is self-less rather that self-ish. I've watched him repeatedly go out of his way to put someone else's needs before his own. Not only that, he's always extremely positive about it. I've never heard him gripe about having to do something for someone else. Instead, he looks for opportunities to serve others and then shows up to help them with a big and cheerful smile. Dad doesn't let things get him down either. No matter how bad he feels, or what unpleasant thing might be going on, his optimistic and positive attitude always shines through. I've rarely heard him say he's anything less than Wonderful or Fine, whether it was the truth or not. As I've observed my dad's overall positive outlook on life I've realized that it's been a self-fulfilling prophecy. No doubt, dad's always let situations that could have made him bitter, make him better. And as a result, he's always had plenty of things to be grateful for and happy about. And because he's always said how good he feels, I'm absolutely certain he's felt much better than he would have done otherwise!

Dad, at the Delta cometary on Memorial Day, 2009, with Elden, Cecil and Coleen.

Dad LOVES people. He's a very social person and thrives on regularly chatting with his MANY friends. I can't even say how many times he's come home to announce that he's planned an outing with friends, or invited people over for a dinner or a barbecue. He loves getting together for food and games. And when I was a kid, I remember sitting in the car after church (when it was too snowy or icy to walk) for hours (it seemed) waiting for dad to come out so we could go home and eat. He was forever striking up conversations with people. And people genuinely love my dad back. Every time I run into anyone who's ever known my dad they ask how he's doing and then tell me how much they've always thought of him - and usually they mention a time that he went out of his way to do something nice for them!

Me at an early age, leaning on my dad's shoulder. As you can see, I've always adored him.

My dad is a go-getter. Never wanting to miss out on a fun adventure, he hiked mountains and ran rivers and was always up for a new adventure until he fell from the top of a scaffold. Even then, he wasn't a quitter. He refused to stay down and baby himself one minute more than was absolutely necessary. Whereas many people in his condition would have let it turn them into a cripple, my dad repeatedly pushed himself to the limits until he'd rebuilt his body and regained his strength. Nothing keeps my dad down for very long. These days he stays in shape by working out on exercise machines in his garage, and tooling around town on his new bike. (Not to mention that fact that he recently lived in Washington for several months, on-site, working full-time to help Bruce and Cindy build a new house!)

Dad, doing a small but typical, act of service... going out of his way to look for Mark and Keely's camera, which they accidentally left sitting by the side of this lake. Unfortunately, the camera was gone.

Dad is big on things looking just right. You should have seen him the day mom and I drug several pieces of their "nice" dark wood furniture out on the deck to paint and distress it (it was of course, my idea). Dad could hardly stand it and kept saying we were ruining it, and "what will people think...". Dad is ALWAYS well groomed and good-looking, and he’s a also little vain. To prove my point, he throws a fit every time I get my camera out and try to take a picture of him (especially close up) because he doesn't like the way he's aging. He also gets embarrassed and slightly irritated whenever people make a big deal about him or fuss over him! (These are some of the few times he does get grumpy.)

Playing cards with the boys. Thanksgiving, 2008

Dad is and has always been, an outstanding grandpa. He is the kind of guy his grand kids want to emulate. When he was little Travis happily tagged along with grandpa and wishfully called him dad. Brandi said he was the only PERFECT man she knew, and at a young age, Aubrey set her mind on marrying a man just like him. Ashlee's favorite memories of grandpa are watching TV and sharing creme filled donuts with him, and riding in his blue truck to get sodas. Preston remembers grandpa taking care of him and making him scrambled eggs. Preston proudly passed grandpa's name on to his firstborn child.

Dad always was a family man!

When Karen, Mark and I were kids, dad always brought us treats after going away for a few days. After I got married, he carried on the tradition. When we moved away, grandpa sent weekly letters that usually included money or something special for the kids. Rarely has "grandpa" shown up at the house of any grandchild or great-grandchild without a treat - usually granola bars or bananas. These days grandpa and grandma are known to pop in on their grand kids a lot because they go out of their way to visit whenever they're in town!

Grandpa's still waiting to see his little namesake Hayden Alden - who is also happy and full of spunk!

Kids and animals have always been drawn to dad. In fact, everywhere he lives at least one neighbor's pet adopts him and comes to visit daily. Currently it's "Happy", a black cat that loves to brush up against his legs and sit on his lap as he rests on one of the benches in his immaculate and "very inviting" yard.

Happy sees dad sitting on the bench and is headed his way. (Notice he's not going towards mom, who's sure to say her ususal Shoo cat!)

My dad has always been there for me. Over the years he's repeatedly hung heavy pictures, installed hooks in cement ceilings, fixed my electrical wiring, helped me move (including across the country), buried dead cats etc., done yard work, driven me to the doctor in bad weather (when I was pregnant), jogged with me to help me get back in shape, lovingly watched my kids, given me good advice and moral support, and given me money. I’ve called my dad and asked him to help me far too many times to count. Also countless, are the number of times he’s come and cheerfully (for the most part) done whatever needed to be done.

A chip off the old block? Maybe not exactly, but in some ways, we are a lot alike!

My dad has taught me many things through his good example and I am a much better person because of him. I think he's an absolutely perfect match for me, and I'm very thankful my Heavenly Father saw fit to put us together!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

I LOVE YOU DAD!!!

And last, but certainly not least, my dad wouldn't be the same without my mom - his lovely, sweet, smart, talented, ambitious, funny, good-cookin' (not to mention patient) wife!!

Thank you dad and mom for staying together and always providing a safe and very beautiful and comforting home for me and my kids to come back to! Thank you for raising me and loving and helping me always. Thank you for being " just you". You are (and always have been) absolutely perfect for me and I love you both very much. You are wonderful parents and I and wouldn't have either one of you any other way!!!

P.S. The potpourri of fonts and sizes on this post is unintentional. I also didn't intend for my "draft" to be dated a full week before Father's Day either. It's simply a result of my technical incompetence :)

Savannah Trip with Ashlee

2009-06-11T16:51:00.000-07:00

June 3, 2009
Ashlee, sitting at the airport waiting for Rhianne to pick us up, and feeling a little grumpy after a less than ideal all-night flight.

Ashlee cheered up the minute she saw Hayden. It was love at first sight!

Of course, I fell in love with Hayden too!

Hayden, at peace with Rhianne's - she's a natural at being a mom

I loved watching Hayden make faces in his sleep!

Hangin out with Hayden

Hayden laughing with me, what could be more rewarding than this?

Being a grandma is GREAT!

Another priceless grandma moment!

Hayden's first time laying on his colorful new play mat.
One more thing to grow into...

Trigger loves attention - even when it's just me nudging him with my toes.

Ashlee getting a kiss from Trigger.

Me, with Preston, Rhianne and Hayden at Fort Pulaski.

Just like old times - Ashlee and Preston sitting on the wall so I could take their picture.

We all agreed that Fort Pulaski is a beautiful place to visit.
But, we wouldn't have liked being here during the civil war!

No wonder we've allways loved coming here...

The dining hall for officers

Imagine, these are Fort Pulaski's finest sleeping quarters!

View of the ocean, from the top of the wall

A new day, a new adventure.
Shopping on Broughten Street before it started pouring down rain!

Broughton street has lots of fun new stores, including So Good jewelry, which wasn't nearly as good as I remembered.

I had to take a picture of some of the SCAD buildings for Elise.
Personally, I'm glad she ended up at BYU!

After church, Ashlee and I drove through our old neighborhood. Ashlee thought our house looked better before they turned the garage into an extra room. I agreed. The house also looks different because they painted it gray blue (a nice choice) and planted formal shrubs, and the trees have grown up in front. Also, my ruffly country curtains and colorful cottage-style flowers are missing!!!

Me, standing on a path that leads to the old cemetery across the street from where we lived. Ashlee remembered it being much scarier then... well, Ashlee is definitely bigger than she was, with a grown-up way of viewing things. But, someone has fixed it up a bit because the path wasn't there before and the cemetery has a chain link fence around it now... To me, the neighborhood looked pretty much the same :)

Ashlee's old school was just like she remembered it.

The swimming pool we went to has definitely gone downhill...

River Street still looks and feels the same.

Savannah's got new age charm.

I agree! When you're walking down River Street, Life is good.

While walking by the river, I stopped and watched a man make a rose out of palm leaves. I felt bad that I didn't have change to give him but he insisted I take the rose anyway. He said since I'd watched him make it it belonged to me. I gave him a hug and prayed that someone would do something really nice for him.

My hat says Georgia Girl. After being here for a week, I'm kind of starting to wish...

Once, I floated down the Savannah river on the Georgia Queen.

Hayden loved being in his wrap, which made it handy for Rhianne to quickly duck in stores when it started to pour down rain.

This clever work of art was hanging in the window as a nice reminder that veggies make a body look good!

Walking along River Street was every bit as charming and delightful as I remembered!

Our family could never make a trip to River Street without visiting River Street Sweets and getting a pralines sample.

Ashlee's very happy to be reliving one of her favorite childhood memories.

Jere's Antiques.
Ahh, this place is truly a blast from my past! I've always wanted to come back here...

Jere Myers didn't remember my name, but in a true southern drawl, he said my face was familiar. (He looks much older now too!) He was impressed when I asked if he was still married to Elizabeth (yes) and told him his "mama", Carol (who passed on in 2002), and I were pen-pals after I moved away.

Just down from Jere's, and in front of the Chart House - one of my favorite Savannah restaurants.

Another colorful view of River Street

On this day it was cold and rainy in Utah, but Tybee beach was heavenly!

We all enjoyed soaking up the sun, sand and sea.

Hayden seemed to really enjoy the warm wind and sounds of the beach.

I was glad to see that Hayden was more than happy laying
under an umbrella and napping on the sand. A sign that he takes after me :)

Hayden's first time sitting in a helicopter with his daddy.

Ashlee and I loved it when Preston showed us around the hanger. One thing was for sure... we were impressed and proud!

It's sobering to think that Preston will be flying this helicopter in Afghanistan, in November. Where has the time gone? I remember well when he was Hayden's age. How did he grow up so fast???

Without a doubt, Rhianne and Hayden are Preston's most valuable and impressive assets!

The night before Ashlee left we all ate pizza at the Mellow Mushroom. Our time together was very good.

Hayden and his proud daddy, showing off his new shirt.

I had a lot of fun being with Ashlee in Savannah. I felt a little sad to see her leave, but mostly I felt very glad that I got to stay for another week!