May 3rd 2014

Not sure what to title this without it sounding depressing. So the date will do.

Today was a hard day. Randy's funeral was today at 10am. It was beautiful, heart felt and humorous. It was great to hear the stories of his life about times I did not know him. Mark did a wonderful job talking about his dad. The many memories and his example as a father and husband. Mark really loved his father and wanted to always make him proud. There is no doubt in my mind that mark made his dad proud everyday. I am grateful for randy and the example he was that helped mark to be who he is today. 

After the service, we headed to Binghamton cemetery to lay his body to rest. We had a procession, traffic cops took care of traffic while we followed the hurst. That was very hard to see. When they carried the casket, It was strange to think that this was all happening. We each got a rose and threw it in the grave and said our goodbyes. We all shed many tears, and even though we all know we will be together again as a family someday, it is still hard to say goodbye. I went to see the headstone for Shane Smith, our friend who died 3 years ago, and there was a poem inscribed which provided a lot of comfort: 

When I come to the end of the road,

And the sun has set for me,

I want no rites in gloom-filled rooms,

Why cry for a soul set free?

Miss me a little--but not too long,

And not with your head bowed low;

Remember the love that we once shared

Miss me--but let me go.

For this is a journey that we all must take,

And each must go alone.

It's all a part of the Master's plan,

A step on the road to home.

When you are lonely and sick at heart,

Go to the friends we know,

And busy your sorrows in doing good deeds.

Miss me - but let me go

I am grateful for the chance to know Randy. He always made sure we were taken care of and happy. He made sure I had my baking beans at family dinners, that lily had the back scratcher and that he spoke with mark everyday to see how his day went. He was generous, caring, very intelligent, smart with money and took good care of Tina and Mark. We will miss him terribly, but we WILL see him again with a perfect body in a resurrected state. No longer suffering from the mortal body, ready again to play ball with Mark. Till we meet again Dad. Love you.

the beautiful display in memory of Dad

 

Fair Fun

We went two nights to the fair, so we did not have to rush getting in all the activities we wanted to do. First night with my parents, second night with marks parents and grandma. There were only two rides for lily, so she went on both three times. I probably should earn the 'terrible mother of the year' award since we took lily while she was sick, but at least she enjoyed it. I took lots of pictures as usual and we ate lots of food.
It is especially nice to think that we got to spend time with Randy Tuesday night at the fair before he passed away. I know that it will be a fond memory we will cherish through the years as we remember him. He always loved going to the fair. Mark tells me about the times his dad would pick him up early from school so they could go together. We were blessed to be with him one last time in a happy and fun environment. We will miss him dearly.

daddy won a toy! Great job

lily and her stallion

pretty disgusting. I think that's the most hideous picture of me EVER, no shame

lily is going to love Disneyland someday



these are our king and queen poses...I think its a good thing we don't rule a kingdom

'I'm the queen of the world'

Easter 2014

I may have gotten a little carried away with the pictures, but that just means it was a fun weekend.
We had a great easter yet again. Lily did end up getting sick with a fever and cough, but that did not stop her from hunting for easter eggs. She participated in 5 egg hunts! it was fun to see her get excited and grasp the fun of the holiday. It was especially funny to watch the parents yell at their kids cause they were not picking up the eggs! Listen angry parent in the green top, we know you are excited to eat the candy (cause your child will only get two jelly beans, and you get the rest) but lighten up and let your child enjoy their surrounding. I say 'funny' but in reality it is wrong. I'm sure I react frustrated by Lily's 'development of understanding' but I hope someone would slap me for it, just saying.
We had a lot of fun this Easter. I know that the purpose of easter is to remember the savior, but I feel that I do that everyday as I show how grateful I am for the life he allowed me to live and the opportunity I have to create an eternal family. I feel very blessed. Now, how bout some pictures!? These are not in order.


 ammas egg hunt

found it!

grammys egg hunt

Easter egg hunt at our house

 

even mark found some eggs

lily got her 'am-e-ut' like Sofia the first

decorated her first egg

purple heart park hunt

Albertsons egg hunt

she stole the bunnies seat

I love my lil bunny

she was so still, ill have to paint her face more often

Spring fling

Yesterday we attended U of A spring fling, one of two carnivals we will attend this month. Lily was able to go on her first ride, which was the only ride she could go on because of her height. At first she seemed scared, continued to keep her eyes in one direction and afraid to turn her head to smile at us as we cheered her on, totally stone faced. The ride finished and I ran to get her unbuckled in case she was scared. Her response? AGAIN! I want to go again! This girl amazes me. She is so brave! Hopefully there will be more rides at the county fair for her to enjoy next week.

Mark and I both tried to beat games to win a prize, but no luck. I love carnival games, feels like gambling... risks can be fun.

First Ride!

she enjoyed dancing to the ride music

 

other then this, life has been pretty busy. I'm working more hours, mark is studying more hours and we are tired. I've had to put physical goals on hold, cause I can only make it to the gym 3x a week, nervous about the 5k next month. I still await the day when lily and I can play together everyday and mark can get started with a big boy job. He got an internship for the fall while working on his masters, so he can see what he's been studying hard to do. Grateful he can graduate with his undergrad next month so we can move onto the next chapter. There is light at the end of the tunnel! Cause I am getting burnt out! Ok, enough venting. Life is good, we are blessed..just life happens.

Next weekend, Easter fun and Fair. Sounds good!