A borrowed post

This was a funny post I had to steal from my clever sister Mindy. I thought it was cute.

Dear wooden spoon,
I miss you desperately. Over the past 14 years you have stirred my fudges, rice puddings and kool-aids. You've helped to form a soft ball, hard ball and balls that crack when you put them in cold water.You have even assisted in child rearing with your swats on the bum (or at least the threatenings of them). Why did you have to leave? I last remember seeing you during the holidays. Amidst the hustle and bustle you left me, unnoticed. I hope you find it in your tiny wooden heart to come back. Are you lost upstairs in the bottom of the toy box? Are you sitting in some church house drawer cold and alone? Were you spoon napped during a potluck? There were just so many toddlers opening and closing things. How could I have known? I hope you weren't listening when Kyle said he didn't even know you existed. It was always you and me, you and me.
With all my love,Mindy

One of Heidi's friends made a list of tributes to Phil and put them on her blog. I really enjoyed reading all the wonderful thoughts and feelings that were shared.


http://banterblogging.blogspot.com/2010/02/drawing-on-others-words.html

Phil Kesler 1968~2010

"Sing, of good things not bad....Sing of Happy not sad"

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"I've got two good friends on my left and my right...."

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"I know deep in my heart, it's never to late for love to start...oh I love you so..never gonna let you go."







Now when we remember spring, all the joy that love can bring....
We will be remembering, the shadow of your smile.



We'll miss you, Phil

Tonight at dinner Mike asked us what country we would like to visit. Here are our answers:

Dad: New Zealand
Mom: Greece
Casie: France
Annie: St. George
Ellie: England...(but then she changed her mind to St. George after Annie said it.)

While we're on the subject of Ellie...

Tonight while we were trying to memorize the third Article of Faith, I found out,.from Ellie that...

"We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all KIND men may be saved by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel."

She is always making us laugh.

And now a word about Annie.

Grandma Madsen is coming over tomorrow to take Annie out on a special "Grandma Shopping trip" for her birthday. Annie has been close to the emotion of AGONY waiting for this blessed day to arrive. Now that it's only 15 hours away, she has a plan. And I quote:
"Mom..in the morning, try to keep me asleep. I don't want a lot of loud talking and moving around. If I sleep until 10:55 then it will only be 5 more minutes until Grandma comes!"
She keeps mentioning that she really really really wants to sleep so those last few hours can speed by. My prediction is that her excitement will wake her up abnormally early and she won't be able to go back to sleep. :-) We shall see.

And now a word about Casie.

Casie is seriously amazing! She is such a great helper and sister. She's been babysitting quite a bit for us lately and doing a wonderful job. (She's also earning a small fortune) I love that I can totally depend on her. She also has a gift for knowing where things are. I don't think she EVER says, "...oh, I saw it somewhere, but I can't remember where"..If she has seen it, she can find it. It's great! (I won't mention that Annie and Ellie can take their shoes off..leave them on the floor...and not be able to find them again in 5 min..) Casie is so smart and level headed too. Our family is so blessed with her agreeable attitude. I also LOVE the way she treats Jack. She is so sweet with him and appreciates his cuteness as much as I do. He always reaches for her and goes to her as eagerly as he does Mike and I. They have a special relationship. He really brings out the best in her.

And now a word about Jack.

I don't think I have EVER met a more content baby. He just wanders around all day in search of new and exciting things...(today he found a whisk and a plunger) He will come to me every so often and say,(while doing the sign) "nack nack". Then I give him a "nack" (snack) and he's off again. (PS I love that he knows some sign language! I truly think that contributes to his happy disposition. He can usually communicate his needs to us without crying. It's great!) He will also snuggle with me! If he gets hurt, or if he's tired, or sometimes, if I'm lucky, he will snuggle for no reason! He loves his blanket and carries it with him everywhere. He really brings so much joy into our home. We all ADORE him!