Marriage – Page 14 – Letters from Home

Mr. Wonderful

Richard at Provo River

Dear Richard,

I just thought I’d thank you for driving us up to Utah (and by this, I mean, Utah Valley as opposed to St George, which as you know, I don’t consider part of Utah proper). Truly, this was a really great trip for our family, and well, Me.

Thank you for buying us tanks to blow up. It really is like throwing cash right into the fire, isn’t it? You were a good sport about that.

Thank you for waiting in the van while I ran into Wal-Mart not one, but two different times within a day so the kids could watch their movie in the van and Daniel and I could have clean shirts for the reunion.

Richard playing ping pong

Thank you for taking lots of pictures for me to share with my parents on the blog. I hope you won that ping pong game, or that you held back from creaming my brother, throwing the game for the sake of family relations. Either way, I’m happy.

Thanks for gently reminding me that we decided 800 pixels, not 600 pixel width for our blog photos. You are right. The pictures look better BIG.

Richard and Mark

And thanks for being such a nice dad, giving rides on the mower, buying lots of chicken nuggets and fries, and dropping us off at the parade and then walking a mile, carrying doughnuts and pop tarts for us to eat at the parade. You were a good sport when we discovered that we didn’t have enough folding chairs for you to have a seat. If Richard II hadn’t noticed your plight, I bet you would have stood there the whole parade without complaining.

And I love you for it. Man, you look good in red.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO,

My Dad and other thoughts

I loved this picture of my dad, taken last month by my mom. I tell everyone I know that he is a Mission President for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It’s a big job, and I know he and my mom are fully invested in the work. I am grateful for their example of sacrifice. My parents have been on their mission for two years with one more to go. The family has been so blessed while they have been away. I really see God’s hand in helping us work through things without Mom and Dad around. I feel protected and happy because of their service.

You know, I started this post thinking I would write about my dad, but within a few sentences, I couldn’t give an adequate description without including my mom. That’s a great tribute to the quality of their marriage. They are a great example of a couple who knows how to work together.

Speaking of being a couple, I’m off to Utah for a few days to accompany Richard to his 20th high school reunion. I’ve been trying to get ready for the trip… you know, shopping for the right clothes and shoes so I can look like the trophy wife that I am. I had no luck in the clothing and shoe departments, but I hit the Bath and Body Works sale, so I will at least smell like a little bit of heaven.

This is such a weird post. All well. At least the picture is good.

Happy 14th Anniversary

My hobby and my hero

I was busy this weekend publishing our homeschool newsletter. What’s inside? 78 poems, one comic strip, one watercolor painting, a historical essay, a literature essay, three drawings, 25 photos, and more! Everything is written by homeschoolers ages 6-17. It’s so rewarding to compile this each month.

We left Paige with the kids on Saturday night for Stake Conference and also Sunday night for my fireside. After 12 years it’s nice to be able to attend church meetings at night with Richard. She read bedtime stories to the boys until Mark fell asleep. Thank you, Paige!

Perspective

I learned today that a friend our age, a father of 3, passed away after a battle with cancer. His name was David and he was a really good person. His goal was to baptize his son before he passed away, and he made it, which tells you the kind of man he was.

Here is a recent photo of Richard and me. I wish I had more photos of the two of us. Kiss your husbands an extra time today and remember not to take them for granted. 2008-12-31-christmas-wedding-trip-0244