The extended Ross family had quite a month. Yesterday was a happy spot, with the wedding of our nephew Jeff. The darling couple played jazz saxophone with their band, sang, and danced at their reception. How enchanting.
Weddings are beautiful, and this one was particularly lovely, but nothing compares to the blessings from our Father in Heaven that we heard during their temple sealing. Well begun, Jeff and Paris!
This blog is no longer about the day to day things, but sometimes it helps me to do a review of the week to see where we have been and where we are headed. Here is how we spent our evenings last week.
Monday: We attended the high school musical, Cinderella to support three young men that we know. One was in the orchestra pit and two were on stage.
Tuesday: Richard worked from home and I attended a Relief Society dinner. I prepared rolls, and for the first time in 13 years of dinners in this ward, I went home with an empty container. You can’t imagine how this feels for me after so many rejections. 😂
Wednesday: I prepared 4 batches of pizza dough for a young men activity at another home where Richard was in charge of pizza night. He shopped for all the ingredients and had quite an array for the boys to make personal pizzas. They had fun.
Thursday: Richard worked, and I probably worked on gifts. I had plans fall through to visit a friend.
Friday: Date to Zao for dinner and then a big Costco trip.
Saturday: We watched the BYU football game and I worked on Christmas card assembly.
Sunday: I finished our Christmas card assembly and Richard called his mom.
I am holding back panic about the demands for this coming week. I will just follow the well-worn plan for Thanksgiving and try to stay steady as I handle some extra things on the to do list.
Is anyone still with me after this long break? Here are some photos of Tim and Queenie’s wedding day at the Draper temple, the wedding luncheon, and the reception. We were busy, we were joyful, we had fun; my heart ached because Mark wasn’t with us.
We love our newlyweds!
I am taking a break from updating my blog during the next few weeks. Weddings call forth many private emotions and so many errands. You can picture me in the aisles of Hobby Lobby on (another) “last trip for the wedding,” running errands, facilitating a big luncheon for family and friends, and preparing church lessons, etc. It’s a time to celebrate Tim and Queenie and to cherish the covenants of the temple sealing. While I am busy, I know that no detail of the wedding matters more than those few minutes in the temple being sealed as husband and wife for eternity.
Tim and Queenie had some early wedding photos taken last week, and I was surprised and honored that Queenie chose to get ready at our house. She asked McKenna to do her hair and makeup, so our dining room became a salon for a few hours. I was occupied with preparing food for the family reunion the next day, so I enjoyed the company while I worked. Daniel and Tim were there, too, Tim trying to tie a bowtie for a lot of the time.
As I’ve said before, this phase of life is either eerily still or bursting with activity. Observing McKenna and Queenie, I felt deep gratitude for these two women.
I remember dates from our history, and if I am not careful, this blog could become a log of old memories. Today is another special one. August 13th was the day we moved into our current home 13 years ago. The move had a significant impact on our children’s lives and who they chose to marry.
Paige was introduced to Michael through a friend from our Sandy ward.
Daniel met McKenna in middle school.
Tim met Queenie in high school.
The house has adapted to many configurations of family members, in and out through their college and mission years. Lately we can count on weekend visits from Tim because Queenie lives nearby.
Today the corners of our house hold Queenie’s wedding dress while I finish some alterations, settings and centerpieces for a wedding luncheon, storage for Daniel and Tim’s belongings, and Mark’s old crib in his room for visits from Paige’s family. Most of the time I am alone in the house now. It has been a good house for our family in all our seasons.
I took about 200 pictures of Tim and Queenie on Saturday night at Albion Basin with a backdrop of wildflowers, mountain peaks, and a beautiful sunset. Wildflower season brings crowds, and Richard circled in the truck, waiting for a parking spot while we began taking photos. Somehow, among all the brides and grooms and families, we were able to take photos without people in the background. I told them to pretend they were the only ones there and not worry about onlookers. Other times, we had the path to ourselves. I felt pretty lucky to have this time with them.
We are happy to share that Tim and Queenie will be married in the Draper temple on October 3. ♥️♥️
Richard and I became engaged during the first week of January, 30 years ago. This little remembrance has been like glitter to my thoughts this week as I have swept away most of the sparkle of Christmas decorations. I believe that we make important decisions each day, including how to spend our time, and with whom we spend our time, but there are a few moments of decision that have immense impact.
Choosing to say yes to Richard’s proposal was the best decision. I wasn’t expecting a proposal that evening, but I remember almost immediately after saying yes, I told him that we would have a good life together…as if I could know…which I couldn’t, on my own. This was a little insight from the Lord, given to me at a critical moment of decision: things are going to be good with this man at your side.
