Poppy's Surprise

The day after Christmas I got the best gift and surprise.  A surprise that I really had no clue was coming.  My father!

Through the giving of my parents, Ronald, and Hannah, Dad was able to come to Utah and stay almost 6 days with us.  It was such a sweet sacrifice given by these people so that I could have my father near me during kind of a difficult time of year; the anniversary of my Grandmother's passing.  I think of my Mom, more than anyone that really had to sacrifice the most.  She had to sacrifice the physical support of her husband while dealing with the reminder of the loss of her mother.  I won't soon forgot this.  I love her anyway, but this act of charity makes me feel that love for her even stronger right now.

Poppy watched the boys for David and I while we celebrated our anniversary, he took the boys to a Trampoline/bounce place, we ate out a lot, we went up in the mountains to play in the snow, Dad and I just sat in bet and watched funny TV shows, and the men/boys went out to see a movie.  I think that was quite a lot for being in the middle of a pandemic.

I love my father.  We have a special bond that is obvious to others and personal for ourselves.  How do you put that into words?  I'm not sure that I quite can.  But we know.  I guess that is all that matters.

Christmas 2020

Christmas this year was a little quieter than usual.  It was simple.  Maybe because of Covid-19 and presents not getting here on time.  Maybe because we didn't go to Oklahoma this year.  Maybe because I was a little sad with the anniversary of Grandma's passing coming quickly.  Who knows but it did feel different.  But sometimes with "different" things comes little blessings like how you can learn from a simple Christmas.  We played games, we ate, we loved, and hopefully we'll remember.

Grandma couldn't come inside because of Covid but she did come over later and we exchanged gifts.

A few days later, some packages arrived.  This was one of our favorites.

 

December Mashup

David, Ruger, and I were out and about earlier this month when Ruger wanted to call his Grandpa Adams.  Somewhere along the conversation (he was on speaker phone) Steve said something about remembering letting his boys handle the steering wheel when they were real young.  I went inside the store to get something and when I came back I found this!

Tumbleweed galore!  The first picture is of one of our neighbors drive way.  The second is a picture of one of the many pileups we saw in our neighborhood one very windy day.

Annual gingerbread decorating. But this year, the 2 older boys decorated theirs and then let Ruger "Hulk Smash" them afterwards.  As you can imagine, absolutely destroying a gingerbread house was something Ruger could not pass up.

So many people have these beautiful, themed Christmas trees.  Not us.  They are full of Primary and Elementary School yearly ornaments made by the kids throughout the years and Nanny's yearly homemade Christmas ornaments.  And then there is that weird, now yearly, trumpet on top of the tree that the boys insist on.  But I wouldn't change it if I could.  

 

Levi is an adult!

My baby.  My first born.  On the 20th he became an adult.  Sorry bud, you'll always be my baby. 

As a toddler, his own personality started to show.  Obedient and kind.  Still is.  When he became a little older, he showed interest in taking things apart and them assembling them back together again.  Still does.  At a young age, he challenged himself to read the Book of Mormon all the way through.  He still loves the gospel and asks questions, showing me that he really does have a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Then he became a pre-teen and showed love for babies and toddlers.  Out of all the siblings, he still gets along best with Ruger.  As a teenager, he discovered his love of welding.  We'll see if he follows that passion after his mission, but as of now that has not changed and he wants it to be his profession.

At 6 food whatever, he towers over his Momma, he loves Sweedish Fish and Coke, he loves playing his piano, he's a hard working man (Little Creasers), he studies the Gospel of Jesus Christ, he hugs his mother without me asking, he enjoys hanging out with his Dad when fixing the cars, bikes, or whatever Dad is perfecting, he laughs with Brigham and Hyrum at silly stuff, and loves messing with Ruger.

  He is the ideal product of parenting that any parent could ever ask for.  

Thanksgiving 2020

 Our food portion of Thanksgiving didn't go as planned but the activities went perfect.  Grandma Helen couldn't come because of Covid-19 so we thought we'd be spending Thanksgiving by ourselves but about 2 days before, Rachel and Stephen contacted us that they would be in Utah and would like to spend it with us.  I'm so glad that they did!  They are such good young adults and I truly love them very much.  

We ended up eating much later than planned but with having FHE with Rachel and Stephen and then playing games, it just went perfectly.  Plus, we had the opportunity to bring food over to a single mom who's children where at their Dads for the weekend.  She was sick and alone and it felt really good to not just help her, but to show the kids.  I often bring meals to people, actually, but I usually do it in private.  But this time I talked to the kids about it because I realized that they will never learn from me to serve in ways like this if I don't show them.

6-year-old little man

I don't think of Ruger's birth Mom a lot.  Don't get me wrong, I occasionally do but not like I did when we first adopted Ruger.  Maybe it's because I don't often think of him being adopted anymore.  I used to be really conscious of it; so afraid we'd do or say something wrong.  Fearing we'd ever trigger thoughts of him not feeling like he was a permanent part of our family.  Now, I'm more relaxed and so all this stuff just doesn't enter my mind as much.

But I'm thinking of her tonight, on her firstborn child's birthday.  Wondering if she's cried today.  Wondering if she has forgiven herself.  

As I think of her, of course I can't help but think of our blessing that came out of her pain.  Gosh, I hope she has forgiven herself because her boy is fiercely loved.  And he loyally loves back!

Here is a picture of Ruger with Leo, a neighbor friend, who is only 2.  Ruger doesn't care that he is 2 and still in diapers.  He just loves Leo!  That is just Ruger for you.  He wants to be everyone's friend.

Leo and Ruger went to Coconut Cove for Ruger's birthday last night.  It's hard celebrating his birthday so close to Thanksgiving and during a pandemic.  But it worked out nicely for us because Ruger doesn't care about how many people show up.  He just wants to play!

One of Ruger's best buds is his cousin Stephen.  He truly loves Stephen.  I mean LOVES him!  I wouldn't be surprised if seeing Stephen on his birthday actually was his birthday present in his eyes.

 Right now Ruger loves Taco Salad, children YouTubers, Seiiki, hanging out with just about any of our neighbors (and that's including the adults!), loves his Daddy the most, thinks farting is the funniest thing ever, and is the life of every party he comes into contact with.  People just love Ruger.  They really do.  He is at an age where his antics don't drive me crazy anymore.  I don't need breaks like I used to.  He makes Daddy feel so good about himself as he watches Ruger and I fighting to get to his car first, every Friday, to see who can touch Daddy before the other.  He's smart.  He's still incredibly active but is finally learning to control some of those impulses that used to get him into trouble.  All in all, Ruger is just a loved and loving kid.

Who Loves Me More?

I felt very loved this weekend.  And though I know that Seiiki loves me, I'm pretty sure David loves me more!