How Do You Say Happy Birthday In German?

Well -- Happy Birthday to Hilda today.

She would be 96. Isn't that amazing?

I miss her a lot.

It's amazing to me that one person can mean so much to you in such a short time. But she did.

You can read some happy memories of her here...

I remember just two days before she died we were talking about death.

She said, "When I die, you can be happy. It's what I want. I'm ready."
I told her, "I will be happy because I believe you'll be with your family again."
She said, "Ach (waving her hand in front of her face). I don't believe that."
I said, "Well, one of us is wrong and one of us is right and I think you're going to be very surprised."

She laughed with me.

I used to dream about her occasionally but not anymore.

I hope that even though she's busy somewhere she remembers me.

Did you ever know someone that you were absolutely sure you knew before you came to earth?

It was like that with Hilda. I think she was the whole reason I went to Seattle.

There were other wonderful things for me there - but she was the real reason.

I'm pretty sure Ryn got to meet her already.
Lots of times I'll tell Heavenly Father to tell them both Hello and I miss them.
I'm sure they get the message.
It'll be so good to see her again someday.
Thinking about the miracle of Hilda makes me miss her and at the same time,
So Happy.

I Heart Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day all!

Things I love:
God
The Gospel of Jesus Christ
My family - everyone and especially Aidan and Chloe
My friends - everyone and just kidding! Everyone!
Seattle
The Temple
My hollyhock picture
My 30th Birthday Scrapbook - see #3 and 4 although they're not numbered...
My job
Convertible Mini Coopers
The Book of Mormon - is it bad this came so late on the list?
Well - all the scriptures...
General Conference - So much. Come on. Love it.
General Relief Society Conference. Even more.
Of course -- Julie B. Beck!
BYU Women's Conference - I love conferences apparently.
Music
Flowers
My photos
Blogs - see the huge list on the side of this page.
My books and my Winnie the Pooh bookends
Disneyland
byubroadcasting.com find a talk database feature
Speaking in scripture :)
My mom's egg rolls and chicken dumplings
My visiting teachers
Homemade oreos
Singing at the piano with ELJ or talking in the kitchen or sitting in the comfy seats by the fire or watching tv with JEJ too or...
Talking on the phone to EJR or watching Golden Girls together or just reminiscing about old episodes together or talking about the Gospel together or...
Ok so I do have favorite friends...
The Golden Girls
The Trying Harder Girls
The Book Club Girls
The Second Saturday Girls
Dancing
My polka-dot umbrella
Walking around Green Lake
Dolly
Lots of dead people - well it's true... I'm just saying.
Traveling
Trader Joe's
ANTM
The Sound of Music
Parties to watch either of the last two items
The Turkeys and all the emailing
Miracles
Pickles -- and snickers pie and lemonade but I don't think Mrs. C reads this....
Pizza
Memories
Future Plans
Promises
Visiting Teaching
Mail - you know, good mail - not just junk
Argentina
Driving
Sledding with my family even though I almost died walking so far in the snow...
Good jokes - got any?
Lists
Being So Happy.
(Hope your day of love was filled with it! Think about what you love and it will be!)

Islands in the Stream/Bridge Over Troubled Water

Did you ever have 4 of the best girlfriends in the world? If you did, then you would know what it's like to come home from work and have this lovely package on your doorstep!

I'll give you a play by play.

"I've got a golden (ok silver) ticket! It's ours Charlie!"

The Turkeys are my dear, dear, dear friends from high school. I was so lucky to move to Illinois in my junior year because that's where I met the Turkeys. It still strikes me as funny that we named ourselves - but we sure did and it sure stuck! (I actually don't totally remember how that came to be...
except the vague, general concept.)

I have so many great Turkey memories. Lots of Allerton, jumping and shaking our booties, Madrigals (in fact, Christmastime sure brings back lots of memories from all those songs) especially The Holly and the Ivy among others. Also, "Sailors", WKRP, "Subway Capitol Hill", Wuscious Wee, Hubway, Carrie-Calls, "SLIPPERS", $5000, American Music, "Hero", putting on lipstick, sheets as towels, duck slippers and oh so many more. We laughed and cried, fought, made cupa-cupa-cupa, went to prom together, graduated and laughed and cried some more before we went away to college.

We lost touch for a while and then found each other again. But, in the meantime, they were there for me during really sad times. Miraculously, even after all this time, it's like no time at all has passed. We're close as always even despite the almost 3000 miles that separate us.

(The fantastic cupcake people actually sprinkled some extra sprinkles on top of the plastic that covered the cupcakes!
So thoughtful! So yummy!)

We live all over the country and the other 4 are all married with 2 (well almost 2) kids each.
I'm so proud of the wonderful wives and mothers they are -- of the contributions they're making in their communities.

They are truly beautiful people.

And they're my Turkeys.

(There were instructions to let the cupcakes sit at room temperature for 4 HOURS before eating them so you can bet I'll be setting my alarm to get out of bed at about 11 tonight to have a little snacky-snack!)

(That's a sweet potato cupcake! So Cool!)

So, not only did I get a fantastic super great job, I got a dozen cupcakes and reminded that I have the best friends in the world.

What's the nicest gift you've ever been given?

How appropriate that in November - well and since I was 16 - the Turkeys make me Soooooo Happy.

Real Love

Aren't you ever just blown away by how much you're blessed by the lovely and loving lives of others?

You've seen those signs that say, "All because two people fell in love."

When two people fall in love, they really do change the world.

Certainly my world has been blessed by so many faithful, loving, happy marriages.

My parents marriage has blessed my life in so many ways. Not just by giving me life either. But by being faithful to one another they have blessed me with security which is not to be undervalued in our society! That's just the very start!

I remember thinking on my mission how grateful I was that my Mission President and his wife had a solid marriage. They spent their time focusing on us and not on their own issues. They were probably not issue-free (although I'm pretty sure they were) but they were solid and the world was blessed.

50 years have made so very many people So Happy.

Potential New Boyfriend

Dear October,

I love you. I'm so glad you've come back again.

I love the apples you bring me, the colorful leaves, football games, cider, pumpkins, sweater weather, rain, General Conference and I love



Yes I do. Thank you, October, for bringing me the Count.

Count - you can move in with me anytime. You are so yummy. I love your chocolatey goodness and wonderful sweet marshmellows. I can eat you without milk (since I don't have any right now) and I can eat you any time of day. I know you have friends Boo-berry and Frankenberry, but I like you much better than them. I wish you were available to me all year round- but I found you yesterday at Target and that makes me -- SO Happy! Love, Amy

Calm on the Water

Monday I was disappointed. It's ok. It happens.

But I decided that it's important for me to express my faith before the blessings come.

I mean - I want Heavenly Father to know (if He reads my blog... :)) that I trust Him now. Before a miracle happens.
Not just after I get the blessings.

I believe in miracles. They've happened in my life and in lives of others I know.

So today I made a list of miracles that I can readily bring to memory. I started with scriptural miracles - but quickly moved on to personal miracles and they've just kept coming to memory
all day long.

**Moses parted the Red Sea.
**Moses was found by Pharoh's daughter - of all the women by the river - and what a huge river!
**Crickets and Seagulls.
**Nephi. He built a boat. He shocked his brothers. The Lord made their raw meat sweet. He kept forgiving. Nephi is a miracle.
**Getting UT residency for tuition right in the nick of time.

**Finding $500 after my young woman Ali told me the story of our meeting 15 years ago on a plane when she was 5.
**Calling Carolyn to my presidency before I even had seen her and she was PERFECT.
**Getting a job at the Social Research Institute which paid a huge chunk of my tuition. I saw the flyer for it the day the application was due but I still got the job. Amazing Blessing.
**Becoming friends with the Disneyland Girls.

**Being at the intersection in the right moment to see my young woman need me.
**Being able to go to Europe with Catheryn.

**Meeting Anastasia in Germany.

**Aidan.

{That kid is a genius and I'm not kidding or exaggerating!!
He knows his opposites which we were practicing here while he played my favorite exercise game of up and down (which consists of him riding on my leg while I move his like 20 lb body up and down. I can go about 4 times before my leg dies.)}

**Finding my condo (on craigslist!) And it didn't sell before I bought it. MIRACLE.


**Being called as YW President on the very day I was going to change to the single's ward.

**Being inspired to do the project for Sister Beck.
**The project worked!
**Running into Sister Beck on Temple Square with all the YW.
**Colleen's family waited long enough to have her FUNeral that I could come during my fall break.
**Going to see Luella after Women's Conference 2006, even though she was already a pumpkin, and that was the last time I saw her. If I wouldn't have gone I wouldn't have seen her the whole time I lived in Salt Lake.
**Linda Johnson came to Temple Square. (Pictures soon to come!)
**Getting called to the BYU Women's Conference Planning Committee.
**The Turkeys. Connecting with them initially. Reconnecting with them recently. Totally worth more than $5000. (So glad Cora made it into the pic with us!)

**Working on the Thursday night shift at the Temple. It was perfect. Those were my people.
**Getting my job at Life Care at Home so I could move to Utah.
**Feeling inspired to move to Utah.
**My money that should've run out in January of 2008 has lasted until now (with a little left still).
**Getting my first job at ManorCare.
**Meeting Hilda.

**Making the connection from Hilda to Jan Conger.
**Getting to do Hilda's (and her family's) Temple Work - and the Burnham's were there for it all!
**Being in the Temple with Elder Scott.
**Getting to introduce Sister Kapp and her husband in Seattle at a conference. To the conference participants - not each other. ;)

**Sister Kapp sitting in front of ELJ and me at the concert two weeks ago.
**Visiting teaching assignment that let me be friends with Maria.

**Maria and I deciding not to move to that FANTASTIC apartment because we didn't know I'd be moving here. Then I moved here.
**Sitting by Elder Wirthlin on the plane on the way home from Ricks College.
**They found Catheryn and Steve.

**Seeing Dolly in the park. What a miracle.

**The Blue Notebook.
**The Antipas recipe.
**My mission president and his wife being here for dinner with ELJ, EJR and their husbands.

**Getting to be in the Solemn Assembly session for President Hinckley and President Monson.
**Picking the very right songs for Stake Conference May 2006. Wow.
**Being in the foyer of the Temple so I could see my friend Sister Chris when she visited Seattle.
**Being called to the Argentina Neuquen Mission.

**Totally embarrassing myself on the phone with President Monson - the miracle is I didn't lose my membership in the church after calling him a liar. Ask me sometime.
**Getting to be with President Hinckley in the Salt Lake Temple for a devotional.
**Being friends with ELJ. Of all the people she knows, I get to be one of her friends. (One that gets to sit at her kitchen counter a lot and eat ice cream and one that calls me when I have blind dates to see if I need rescuing and takes me with her to the symphony - oh how I love her.)

**Being friends with EJR. Of all the people she knows, I get to be one of her friends. (one that she shares jokes with and buys dresses for and watches The Golden Girls with and lets read her manuscripts and plays dominoes with even when it's hard - oh how I love her.)

**I was born! Into my family at the very time I needed to be born.

(Come on that is an awesome picture.)

**I was born into a family that embraces and lives the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ!

**So many Luella miracles.

**Luella herself was a miracle.

**Thinking to call the American Cancer Society about the job posting and finding out about the other available job.
**Just deciding to send my resume to Caresource even though there were no job openings.
**Passing the Social Work Licensure Exam.

My dad always says, "The Lord loves a coincidence."

I think it's true because you can choose to see His hand in all things or not. He never forces. So I want to be a part of the righteous generation - not seeking a sign like the wicked generation - but seeing the signs of His Love everywhere.

I doubt not the Lord nor His goodness.
I've proved Him in days that are past.

So while waiting, I will not doubt. I will be patient. I will be hopeful and I will live my belief that if I have to wait until eternity for some blessings, the blessing of the Atonement is enough until then. More than enough. And the amazing thing is - that's not the only blessing He has given me. See above list for proof.

What miracles are you most grateful for?

Past, Present and the Promise of Future Blessings make me,
So Happy.

Sneakin' Around With You

A year ago today my friend Colleen made her return appearance in Heaven.

I'm sure that she did not sneak in but that her arrival was
greatly anticipated.
Her FUNeral was like 3 hours long.

These were some of the flowers Maria and I got for the FUNeral.
We knew she'd love flowers coming out of a pumpkin.
Then we found that box that actually SAID Colleen.
It was a sign.
So today I just want to use my Colleen language and record all the fun things we used to do and say. Maria and my mom will probably understand most of it - well some anyway - the rest of you can think about wonderful inside jokes that make you smile when only the two of you understand.


Colleen memories:
Harold andMaude, Arthur Arthur, The Best Little *House in Texas.
"My brother named..."
Phil (actually Rich), Kirk (actually Rick)
Straight Hand Across, Jen
We can be a bus!
The purple afghan.
Our accident on the way to Phyllis's dad's funeral after we had a prayer.
Hot fudge sundaes.
The Turtle.
Cool Pleasures.



(Sorry it's not right way up)
Heart Attack Window Decor.
Katherine Weeks Genes/Jeans. I still have them.
"Pop Up!" (Bonnie Parkin).
Sister Parkin's silver umbrella pin.
Airflow.
Hurricane Ridge.
Our bracelets.
More precious than rubies conference.
Celebrating New Years at Jack in the Box and watching the fireworks from the middle of Hwy 99. I had our celebration paper in my car for years. It may still be in there actually.
The little purple thing. My little purple thing was black.

Valentine's surprise for KW.
The wild thing monkey.
The enormous monkey for KW when she was sick.
KUU (KW) license plates.
The wet wedding dress story.
We don't ask how, we just ask why.
Treasures of Truth book (ok these are a lot of KW memories too but they so go together)
Deleted.
Tar-jet, Tarzhay, Target. Same store, three different locations.
How she'd always brew the coffee in the hotel room.
Matches in her make-up bag.
"Paradise View"
Going to the symphony for Christmas.
Lip plumper.
The secret way to go to the Temple off of 2nd Ave and 99.
The Contra-alto man singing Handel's Messiah. Wow.
Fetus-man.
The money tree.
Putting one rose bud in water in a bowl from the Stake kitchen for the reception.
Women at the Well.
The Seattle Temple at like 4 in the morning.

Sister Lily.
Loving the Seattle Temple all the time.
Just heading right up to the room instead of going to the Chapel. Don't worry - we're on time.
Praying to get to the Temple on time. You pray, I'll drive. We made it.
Salon Excellence.


Krispy Kremes - "That'll be $8.57 for your two donuts and chocolate milk please."
Eating lunch in the triangle.
Sequim.
Carol.
Aletha.
Blu Water and S'mores.
Blu Water with the Croshaws.
Time Outs.
Chinook.
"Day-oh. One day sale one day sale one day sale. Friday only at the Bon Marche." (sung to the tune of Day-o) One day sales- all the time.
When she got stuck right in the path of the naked bike Fremont parade.
"Tendencies."

Clip on the eyebrow.
Life is Real.
The Bug Stik.
Green Cake.
Thai One On.
Moonshadow.
Moon something - in Richmond Beach - so yummy!
ARTERIALS!!!!!!!!

First favorite everything.
First Favorite Fred Meyers.
Buying a table turkey for her brother named John when he was attached to an IV.
I'm not a real person.
Hair colors changing - on all of us.
Going to see Ed and how he'd shrug up his shoulders when he laughed and how much he loved her. And how much they had decorated their apartment on every square inch for whatever holiday it was.
Sneaking Around With You...
Science Project Hair.
Me falling asleep on the couch ... "Sarah Brown is my..."
Ben and Jerry.
Lunches at China First.
Carl and George at Aldercrest.
Bedroom Makeover with Tanni.
Eating at the Space Needle with Mom and Lacey.
Yes - we'll take the bottle of Martinelli's for $15.
Ice chips in the ER for me.
Olpin Enjoyment Weekend.

Zoopas.
Getting invited to dinner and then just going to Zoopas on Sunday.
The Sundance House.
Gregory Ann.
Septmeber Grass.
The Scary Closet.
Kitchen Dick Road.
Dungeness Spit.
Road Trips.
Christmas downtown -- The Figgy Pudding Contest.
Resting at the Bon Marche.
Claustrophobia!
My birthday party on the patio with the turtle tablecloth and the flip flop key chain.
Riding in the back of a police car - no air bags. - no ticket.
Like 45 police behind us on the bridge after the accident.
Documentation!
Non-verbal communication.
Old Navy - those pajama pants. (Hey I'm wearing them right now!)
You Pick- We Pick.
50th Surprise Birthday Party - "Ok everyone come out of the kitchen!"
Tacky Postcards.
El Gaucho - YUM!
Ivan. Marjorie.

Going to Leavenworth to get her the music box to replace the one that she had gotten in Europe and brought home and showed her roommate and the roommate thought she bought it for her so the roommate took it and thanked Colleen for it!
Chocolate Pudding. Or tapioca for KW but you have to eat it our special way.
LuDean.
Dagne.
Jennie Folan and the greeting card placemats.
Let's go to the Outback cuz you always know what you're gonna get.
Dilletante's.
Movies.
Louise.
Marathon Saturdays.
Her first favorite daughter that she never had.


So many more...
And so many more pics too - I'll have to scan them in though because a lot of our documentation happened before digital cameras.

The day Colleen got sick, she was actually moving down to Utah.
I was so excited for her to come and live close to me.
Her heart was the biggest heart I have ever encountered.
At her FUNeral there were so many people to whom Colleen had been their best (and maybe only) friend.
I miss her -- I can't wait to see her again.

Thinking about Colleen and being so grateful for our memories makes me SO Happy.