So Hungry

Can you guess what this post is going to be about?  Our little Layton is one lean mean eating machine.  You wouldn’t know it by looking at him because he is so tiny, but this child can put away the food.  Notice the very fat cheeks and empty plate?  His cheeks are full of the pancake that he scarfed down in  less time than it took me to cook another pancake.  He was so hungry that he came begging for another one.  Looking at his little sad eyes you would think that he had been going without food for days and was pleading for just a little more to fill his empty belly.  It really is crazy how much he can eat.  Some days I think he eats more than Mandy who is twice his size!

Along came a spider

and sat down beside her him.

Dallin thought it would be fun to make a spider and try to scare Mandy.

It didn’t work.  When she found it she just grabbed it and laughed.  But it’s the thought that counts, right?

Big Pa and Mama Doris

This picture represents my earliest memory of childhood.  I remember laying on the couch with my Big Pa.  By the time I came along, my grandfather was in his seventies and was crippled so he spent much of his time lying down.  And he would let me lay with him.  Funny thing is, I’m not even sure this is a real memory.  You know how after you have heard a story told to you over and over you get a picture in your head of that event and somehow it becomes real to you.  This may be the case for this memory because Big Pa died just after I turned 2.  But, because this story is special to me, I’m just going to go on believing that I really do remember it.

Even though Big Pa passed away when I was 2, as you have seen from all the posts this week, Mama Doris is still going strong.  Unlike this single memory that I have of Big Pa, I have a whole lifetime of memories of her.  While growing up, rare was the day that I went without seeing and talking to her.  She has always been an influence for good in my life.  I love her and am so glad that she is my grandmother.  And for Dallin, Mandy, and Layton, she really is a GREAT grandmother.

Party Favors

What’s a party with out party favors? To thank all those who came to the party, we handed out candy bars wrapped in some of Mama Doris’ favorite quotes. She repeats them to us all the time. She is 90 years old and I think she has a better memory than I do!

These are some close-ups of the quotes. Many of them you have probably heard before. Do you know who said the quotes originally?

A few other quotes that she loves that didn't get put on the candy bars are:

I wept in the night for the shortness of sight

That to someone’s need made me blind

But I never have yet, felt a tinge of regret

For being a little too kind

There is a destiny that makes us brothers,

None goes his way alone,

What we send into the lives of others,

Comes back into our own

And one of my personal favorites:

Quiet people aren’t the only

ones who don’t say much.

Minnie Pearl

One thing that Mama Doris is famous for is her impersonation of Minnie Pearl.

She's mighty spry for a 90 year old!

And if you don't know who Minnie Pearl is, well shame on you! No really, you can read about her here.

P.S. Sorry for the bad camera work, but Layton was sitting on my lap and he sometimes makes things a little difficult!

Party! Party! Party!

Mama Doris’ birthday party was the place to be last Saturday night. There were so many people there. It was fantastic. There was so much love in that room.

This is Mama Doris’ only living brother, Uncle Pete, and Aunt Caroline.

Seriously, there were so many people there. Even my brother Cliff showed up! Don’t you just love his smile? His nick name isn’t Mr. Ed for nothin’ ya know.

Can you believe that Aunt Becky and Kylia were worried that there wouldn’t be enough food because we were doing it pot luck style? Bahahahahahahahaha

If you left hungry from the party, it was your own dang fault!

Even my mother-in-law came. Whew, she’s a brave woman! I think she still might be experiencing the after affects of the culture shock!

And Jaren, this picture is just for you. Love you!

Really though, thank you for your help. And Kylia you need a huge shout out! Do you know that I didn’t even get a picture of you? What the heck was I thinking? Thank you though for all you did. And thank you to Leslie, Gyll, Gayle, Gretchen, Uncle Jon, Aunt Mary, Charles, David, Sherri, Lynn, Paul, Lori, Brian, Meris, Terah, Drew, and everyone else that helped out with setting up, cleaning up, providing entertainment, and decorations. Leslie painted this banner. Isn’t it awesome?

Simply amazing how many people were there!

The cakes looked great and tasted great too! Thanks again to Kylia!

The evening was also full of entertainment. Zach and his brother Jacob were fantastic!

So good in fact, that even Mama Doris got up and danced.

And you know my kids. They never miss any chance to dance. Just look at Mandy shaking her little booty.

One act that I really enjoyed that evening, was Paul and Lori singing “Snow White Dove”. Once you listen, you’ll understand why Mama Doris loves to hear them sing so very much. She requested this performance special. It is also rather comical because my cousin Paul is a goof and I love him!

And even though people were supposed to bring their covered dish as their gift, some people brought gifts anyway. Mama Doris loved every single one!

There was one other performance at the party that was extra special, but I think it deserves it’s own post, so stay tuned tomorrow.

What? She’s 90?

My grandma turned 90 yesterday.  She had a huge birthday party on Saturday.  So for the next few days, just get used to me posting things about her.  For starters today, I wanted to share the biography that was written in the program.

Doris was born August 30, 1919 to goodly parents who raised her to be strong, self-assured, intelligent, happy, generous, kind, and loving - in short - AMAZING. She graduated at the top of her class and at only 18 years old, she left her home and served a mission for the LDS church in Spartanburg, South Carolina and the Catawba Indian reservation in North Carolina. At age 25, she met the love of her life, Parley Sunshine Shuler. Upon marrying him she immediately gained 5 wonderful children to whom she was more friend than mother. She later had two more children and now has more grand children, great-grand children, and great-great grand children than she can count! But somehow, she knows and loves each and every one of them. She spent much of her life working at White Springs which she cherished because she loved talking to and getting to know all the people she met. Later in life, she served another mission for the LDS church at the Atlanta Temple. Her life has been one of service and most importantly love. And she hasn't quit yet! She still has lots of spunk and lots more love to give. Aren't we lucky to have the privilege of knowing her?

Reason #5683

stay at home moms of toddlers SHOULDN’T work.

Yesterday I had a teleconference with my supervisor, two of my peers from work, and three engineering consultants.  We were very intently discussing a facility’s discharge into an Outstanding Florida Water.  As one of the consultants began his argument for why we should allow the facility to discharge wastewater with high levels of specific conductivity, I heard a little beep sound and the very loud sounds of some Layton gibber gabber.  I ran and grabbed the other receiver he had somehow got a hold of and waited for the fallout on the phone.  Gladly the engineer who was speaking, just paused for a brief second and then went right on with his argument.  No one mentioned it when he finished speaking, and I sure as heck didn’t say a word about it either.  All I can say is I am so stinking glad it was a teleconference and not a video conference because my face was so red from embarrassment that my head looked like a giant tomato!  Ack!!!!!!!!!

The School of Moo

Many have asked what Mandy does during the day while Dallin is at school.  We have recently decided to enroll her in the School of Moo, which was named after none other than Mandy Moo Who herself.

The School of Moo has a variety of classes to choose from and Mandy takes advantage of them all.

The first class she attended was a cooking class.  In this class we prepare a variety of food using the most unusual ingredients.

The next class she attended was a ballet class.  Our ballet instructor emphasizes self expression of movement rather than adhering to a strict regimen of learning specific techniques.

She then attended a more traditional class where the basics were taught using the good old fashion methods of repetition and worksheets.  This particular class requires intense concentration and reaps the reward of intense motherly praise.

The last class she attended on her first day at the School of Moo was the audio visual art class.  We studied a number of art techniques employed in different educational videos.

Charlie Brown is educational, right?