Work day
Category: Family Time
Grandma’s Birthday
My mom and I decided to surprise my grandmother in Nevada for her birthday last weekend. Here are a few pictures from the party.
She allowed us to pamper her for a few days. My grandfather told me over and over how much he loved her. She takes good care of him.
She is quite the decorator. Isn’t her living room lovely?
My grandmother asked me to play the violin at her party. My grandfather wouldn’t let me stop. I played and played and he asked for more after the guests left, his face beaming because he loves music.
Somehow I missed taking a picture of my mom. It’s an all-day drive to my grandmother’s house and we talked the whole way there and back again, my voice becoming hoarse. My mom and I could probably call driving together “cheap therapy.” Years ago, we got talking so intently that I accidentally drove 30 miles into Wyoming instead of to the cabin where we were headed.
I learned things about my grandmother on this trip without my children. I saw her marriage, her personality, and her interests in a new way. I’m thankful for the women in my family. I’m thankful for my grandfather, who can’t remember many things, but remembers how much he loves his wife and children.
A Summary
Where have you been during my absence online? I hope you’ve seen something beautiful or read something good or eaten a delicious meal without having to do the dishes afterwards.
We have been inside the house, at parks, in our schools, church, and work. It’s a full life. Richard works very long hours and on Saturdays. It is stressful for him. I am used to having him gone on weekdays, but those desolate Saturdays without him are just no fun.
The tepee is finished and looks so fun in Mark’s room.
Mark continues to pass through the gate behind our house to his friend’s house to play each day. There are kittens! There is a puppy! Our house lacks these things, but we do have Legos to make up for it, and I have been told that our food is good and I’ve been enlisted to sew a couple of projects for the little boy.
Paige completed the first two applications for awards and scholarships that she will submit this semester. What a task that is! Here is a collage of some of her art.
Paige spoke in Stake Conference on Sunday. We are so proud of her. She was calm, confident, and her talk about the Book of Mormon was beautiful. I wish you could have been there. Someone took this picture from another building where her message was being viewed on a screen.
Timothy made some great plays as catcher and first baseman last week and he tells me that he’s not ready to play the trombone for me yet.
Mark is good at hitting baseballs in his red helmet.
Daniel travels in a pack of friends that I really like. There are movie nights and Frisbee games at the park, game nights in our basement, and lunchtime ball games at school. Hooray for good friends!
The new violin had two debut performances this weekend at Stake Conference. I have been given so much praise. At first it made me feel shiny to get all of the attention. Now I feel a little dulled by it. I can’t explain it. Perhaps it’s just too much for me to take in. I do like hearing that people were touched by the music and that some people have translated the music to an expression of my testimony. Because it is.
The weekend of music and speaking at Stake Conference made me feel like we’re accepted here. It’s not easy to integrate into a new place with people who have lived here a long time. The kindness of our neighbors has always made the transition softer, but to be invited to share thoughts and music makes me feel like people accept our version of contribution.
Richard made lemon ice cream to celebrate everything. All is well.
Sentimental Journey
One day my violin teacher, Liz Deters stopped me during my lesson and made me promise that I would never stop playing the violin. She was always very dramatic, but I took the promise seriously. I am so grateful that I did.
I became very sentimental before I picked up my new violin this weekend. I thought of all of the amazing opportunities that I have had with my old instrument, the generosity of my parents who bought it for me, the places I have played, and the people I have met. I reflected on the blessing that it’s been to be a violinist.
I reminisced a bit with Richard and I wondered if I would play in as many places with my new instrument. No, we decided, probably not. But that is okay. The opportunities of youth are over, but that doesn’t mean the memories and the experiences cease to enrich my life.
With my little instrument, I’ve been invited to celebrate at weddings and parties; I’ve also been invited to provide comfort at funerals. I’ve been invited to unique venues such as a high council meeting when I was a teenager and years later, a mountainside in the dark for Pioneer Trek. Some of my best friends have been my music friends. I’ve met generosity and sacrifice in my teachers, parents, husband, and children so I could play.
I’ve played my little instrument in the Salt Lake Tabernacle, high school auditoriums, LDS stake and ward buildings, at universities, and on hillsides. I’ve been a soloist, a concert master, and sat so far back in an orchestra that I could hardly see the conductor. I’ve felt strong and I’ve felt weak. I have learned to accept both compliments and mistakes gracefully.
My favorite times on the violin were a couple of Christmas parties in Arizona where I joined a band and we presented a fun program with pop, folk, and sacred music. I love fiddling for my family’s traditional dancing of the Virginia Reel in the mountains.
I am thankful for the emotional outlet my instrument has given me and I cherish the notes of thanks that I have received from people who have been touched by the music.
My new violin is here and last night I played everything I know how to play and then brought out some old concertos from my high school days. I am so thankful to be a violinist and I am excited for the new chapter of music in my life!
Wicked 2014
Paige’s birthday present was a trip to this play with Richard and me. It did not disappoint.
A Memory of a Summer Afternoon
The late afternoon sun made a golden light behind my two sons’ frames. Daniel and Mark were at their busiest and best among the rocks, knee-deep in the cold mountain stream. There were rocks to move to shore up the wall, and they attacked the project with intensity. I watched them from the wooden slats above, enjoying the teamwork, masculine camaraderie, and those moments when they invited me into their wonder.
It didn’t matter that one boy was 14 and the other only 8. Nature had a way of smoothing out the differences between them and brought them running to me to share.
“Look, Mom!” is one of my favorite phrases. Rocks, a skull, a stick, all in their turn were placed in front of me. Invited into their world for a minute, I admired their treasures and savored their attention to sharing beauty. Bringing each offering to show me, I found a boy of no distinct age, simply boyhood.
The wonder, simplicity, and generosity of these moments of boyhood are some of my best treasures.
Yellowstone Photos
There are so many memories from these quick days. We loved eating outdoors, even though the mosquitoes came along. We enjoyed the crowds and the contrasting quiet of the woods and playing balance beam on the logs. We loved the wildlife and shopping for t-shirts in West Yellowstone. The Ross parents were great company and enriched the experience with their knowledge of the park, their humor, pancakes, cookies, and ice cream cones almost every time we stopped for gasoline.
On the trip home, I read aloud in the truck. We passed 6 temples, not counting the two we can see from our home hill. Daniel and Mark rode with Richard’s parents for most of the trip. It was good for our family to go to Yellowstone. I think it will be one of the trips the kids will remember vividly, not just because of the spectacular things we saw, but the small things we did, too.
The next adventure: School begins next week.
Yellowstone!
Even though I have never been to Yellowstone before this trip, nostalgia is what I have felt here. A road trip with the family, camping by a lake, and seeing things that have attracted crowds for over a hundred years feels old fashioned and it’s a perfect ending to our summer.
By name
Here are the dog tags I made for each member of the Sanchez family. It was a lot of work, but as I hammered out the names, I thought of their personalities, challenges, and accomplishments. My appreciation for them grew as the names gathered in front of me on the step.
We read in the Book of Mormon that “all things are written by the Father” (3 Nephi 27:26) referring to the records that are kept by which the world will be judged. Perhaps one “parenting tip” or “family relationship tip” we can gain from this is that keeping records of the people in our lives can help us be better judges of their motives and needs.
Sometimes I will write a paragraph about each child in my journal so I can remember their lives. When I do this, sometimes I feel inspiration about what they need. Patterns in their behavior become clear messages of what they are going through.
Angie’s advice for the day: write down the names of each family member. Pause and think of their strengths, challenges, and contribution to your life. Perhaps say a prayer of gratitude for each of them by name. Take action on the things you feel inspired to do for them.
These are good kids.
I’m proud of how my kids handled themselves at the family cabin this week. They are among the oldest of the cousins, so a lot of responsibility fell on them to entertain the littles. And there were a lot of them.
Cousins are important. They are your built-in friends that you will see regularly nearly your whole time growing up. If you’re lucky, you’ll stay in touch after you’re all grown. Some cousins share similar genes; many of our kids’ cousins are adopted, step, or foster children, but the concept of family is still just as strong, maybe stronger because of them. This year I loved watching our kids interact with their cousins.
Just like everyone, our extended family deals with some difficult issues. One day when I was really worried about a situation and praying to know how to act, I was reminded by the Spirit to focus on my children, not the problem which was out of my control. Our kids are independent so I don’t always take time to watch what they’re up to. Because of this answer to prayer, I perched at different vantage points and focused on them during the last half of the week. This exercise changed the way I felt about everything. Just as our children need our guidance, sometimes we need to look to our children to remember joy.
Photos by Paige, Susan, and Sarah