Miriam turned 7 on Monday and is already lamenting that it will be one more year until she turns 8 and can be baptized.
But we had fun on her birthday with cousins, uncles, aunts, grandparents, sisters and parents.
The birthday girl with her birthday cake. She wanted something Harry Potter themed, so we made some Quidditch hoops and a snitch.
First we had dinner.
Analee came up with the idea of transforming the table into the Great Hall by adding floating candles (toilet paper tubes, tissue paper and invisible thread).
Then she opened presents.
The Super Girl doll she received from Aunt Rachel and Uncle Justin. She also received Batgirl and Poison Ivy action figures from Grandma and Grandpa Scott; her Tsum Tsum dress (given to her that morning so she could wear it to school), a "What Does the Fox Say" T-shirt and a Super Girl action figure from her parents; shrinky dinks, colored pencils and a coloring book from Uncle T and Aunt McKall; paper clip bookmarks from Analee; and $20 and a roll of TP from Grandma Susan and Grandpa Dennis.
Because Grandpa Dennis is creative with his present wrapping.
Then we bashed a piñata.
To go along with her theme, we put Voldemort on one side and Harry on the other. She wanted to make people hit only the Voldemort side, but it's hard to do that when you've blindfolded.
The second time around, we let everyone hit sans blindfold.
And we ended with cake and ice cream.
After we finished singing "Happy Birthday," Miriam had to add her favorite ending: "Cha cha cha! Oo la la! Cut the pizza, hiyah!"
We made the annual sojourn to Stone to see relatives at the Scott reunion last Saturday. And poor Analee made the annual stop at the side of the road due to carsickness. There's something about the twists and turns of Mink Creek and the rolling hills and 90 degree turns of Arbon Valley that get her every time.
Regardless, the reunion had good food, good company and good times.
Miriam, Seth and a cousin gang up on Andrea in a noodle fight.
Winnie is somewhere behind those playground balls.
Lining up for grub.
Andrea seeks help with identifying people in a picture on Family Search from Aunt Karen while Winnie sits on her lap.
After our day trip to Logan on the Tuesday of spring break, I spent Wednesday holed up at the computer working on the elementary school's yearbook. So to make up for it, we went to the Artitorium on Thursday.
We've been there a few times before, so we kinda knew what to expect. But they've added several activities, so it was worth the trip.
Miriam, Analee, Rebekah and Winnie paint trees with green shaving cream mixed with glue.
The Forest Service was also there, so the girls got to pet several pelts, color animal masks and meet Smokey the Bear.
The bigger girls were uninterested in meeting Smokey, and Miriam wouldn't get any closer than this.
For a little one-day getaway during the girls' spring break, we drove down to Logan March 21 to find some fun. We started at Gossner's where we bought our weight in flavored milk, whipping cream, and cheese. Then we headed over to tabernacle.
The girls outside the tabernacle.
We went inside the family history library in the basement of the tabernacle to see if the rest of the building was open to look through. It wasn't, but the sweetest senior missionary got the keys and took us on a private guided tour.
Miriam and Winnie checking out the stained glass.
She also gave us a tour of the family history library where she explained such things as microfilm and negative scanners to the girls. She pulled out a 100-year-old book of Mormon pioneer men and opened to a random page. I pointed out the girls' ancestor (Homer Duncan) on that page, and we looked up another ancestor (Marriner Wood Merrill).
Then we drove to the temple and walked around the grounds.
In front of the Logan Temple.
Rolling down the temple hill.
On the way there, I told the girls about their Great-Grandma and Grandpa Scott who rode in a sleigh to the Idaho/Utah border and transferred to a car to go the rest of the way to Logan to be sealed in the temple. While on the grounds, I read them this story about their fourth great-grandpa Merrill who was the temple president.
After our lunch stop (takeout from Taco Bell eaten on a church lawn), we went to the cemetery to find another ancestor. It was tricky finding her because (1) her headstone says "Margaret Wallwork Bradshaw" but (2) the cemetery directory lists her as "Jones, Margaret W." See, she was born Margaret Wallwork, then married a Bradshaw (through whom we descend) but later married a Jones after her first husband died. I don't know why her headstone only lists her first married name (neither her first nor her second husband is buried in that cemetery). Anyway, with some help from the billiongraves.com satellite picture, we finally found her.
After this picture, the girls gathered fallen pine branches and dead leaves to decorate her grave.
Our last stop was for Aggie ice cream (Andrea: salted caramel, Rebekah: praline pecan, Analee: raspberry Oreo toffee chocolate, Miriam: cookies and cream and "That Blue One," Winnie: "That Blue One"), and we made it home in time for dinner.
With Rebekah taking band this year and my involvement in FAME, I thought it would be fun to attend the annual Idaho Falls Symphony family concert. They performed Lemony Snicket's "The Composer is Dead," which was entertaining and educational. But before the concert, the Civic hosted an "instrument petting zoo" in the foyer. The girls got to see several instruments and even try a few.
Tiny Winnie holding the violin (with some help). Miriam's stuffed owl is tucked in the upper part of her shirt, in case you were wondering.
Miriam's turn on the violin.
Analee managed to hold her mouth correctly and play a few notes on the flute.
As a 4th grader, Analee has spent her year learning about Idaho history and memorizing lines, dances and songs for the annual Idaho program. In March, all the students got a turn in the spotlight to show off what they've learned.
Analee dancing the polka with her partner.
Analee stood in the back corner during all the singing.
For Dr. Seuss' birthday/Read Across America Day on March 3, the girls got to dress up as a favorite book character. The 1st graders also had the option of wearing their pajamas. Miriam did both.
A Hogwarts student wearing her jammies under her robes and tie.
Cousin Libby chose to be baptized, so we drove west to attend and spend some time with family in Meridian. We jumped in the van Friday after school (January 20), got to our hotel in Boise at bedtime. It's hard finding hotels that have rooms big enough for six people, but the Comfort Inn by the airport fit the bill for us: two queen beds and a sofa sleeper, free hot breakfast and a pool.
The next morning, we got dressed in our Sunday clothes and drove to Meridian to witness the happy event. I found out an hour prior that I would get to play the piano at the baptism. (Gratefully, the requested songs are easy ones.)
Andrea at the piano while Grandma Scott prepares to lead the music.
Miriam, Seth and Winnie waiting for the baptism to start.
Analee and Rebekah passing the time.
Afterward, we went to Uncle Jon and Aunt Annie's beautiful new home to spend time together.
Analee, Libby, Ellie and Miriam eating pizza for lunch.
Uncle Jon seeing if Winnie can get out of the blanket he wrapped her up in. (She couldn't.)
Winnie, Analee, Rebekah, Shelby and Grandpa Scott playing in the snow in the back yard.
After getting out a million Shopkins and spreading them all over the playroom, shooting Nerf guns in the basement, lounging around reading books and eating dinner, we headed back to the hotel so the girls could play in the pool for a little while before bed.
The next morning, we went to church with the cousins and departed for home with one major stop on the way. Seth has some ancestors buried in Rupert, and he hadn't ever seen their headstones before. The snow was really coming down, but I insisted that we stop anyway because it would "be an adventure." We had to tromp through some deep snow and spend some time looking for the right places, but we managed to find what we were looking for.
Analee by Mary Spidell's headstone.
Analee, Winnie and Miriam listen to Seth as he shares a family history story with them.
Winnie, Seth, Miriam, Analee and Rebekah by Harlowe Redfield Hoopes' headstone.
Seth shares another story (this one about Harlowe) with the girls.
Neither Seth nor I were surprised when he got a phone call about 9 a.m. on December 30. Grandpa Dennis was calling to let us know that Old Grandma (his mom) had passed away early that morning.
Old Grandma has been in poor health for a long time. (By the way, we refer to her as "Old Grandma" only because she referred to herself in such terms when Rebekah was young. She didn't want her to be confused with her two Grandma Grovers (one a grandma and one a great-grandma), so she called herself "Old Grandma." It was such an endearing term that we continued to use it.) We were so grateful that we had been able to gather at her home for dinner Christmas Eve and make that wonderful memory together.
Not long after the dinner, she went downhill quickly. Dennis had helped move her to Teton Post Acute Care and Rehabilitation the evening of December 29 where she passed away just hours later.
Understandably, we were all sad to hear of her passing, but it's wonderful to think of her reunited with Old Grandpa who passed away while Seth serving the last few of months of his mission in 2003.
Seth gathered the girls in the living room to share the news with everyone. The girls shed a few tears and then we all shared things that we love about Old Grandma.
And then we set to work. Grandma Susan acquired family photo albums and started scanning pictures so Seth and I could put together the slide show for the viewing. It was fun to look at all the images and reflect on her life and our interactions with her.
We attended the viewing Tuesday, January 3, at Coltrin in Idaho Falls. All of Seth's siblings were there (Kent and his family had flown in from Virginia and Jason from Boston), so it was fun to visit and interact with friends and family.
Emma, Kelsey, Winnie and Miriam gathered around one phone watching a show in an adjoining room at the funeral home.
Cooper, Charlotte and Hudson watching on another phone while Uncle Justin acts as the TV stand. Uncle Justin was so sweet to keep an eye on the kids in the room. In fact, the ladies who help run the funeral home commented on how the kids at this viewing were the best behaved little ones they've ever seen.
Rebekah looking at a history book while Ana watches the little kids.
The viewing.
Grandma Susan and Seth. (Coincidentally, they're talking to my mom.)
Dennis. (Also coincidentally talking to my mom.)
The funeral was held the next day. It was a beautiful service. We all got to sing "I'll Often Go Walking" and substituted "mother" with "grandma." Seth (guitar), Aunt Rachel (guitar) and Uncle Kent (saxophone) played "Amazing Grace." Grandpa Dennis spoke.
I've never been to an internment quite like this one. For one thing, we drove from Coltrin in Idaho Falls to the Archer cemetery (the longest funeral procession I've ever taken part of). For another thing, it was below zero that day, so we all put on lots of extra layers in the car on the way to the cemetery. The graveside service was short (remember: below zero degrees!), everyone returned to their cars quickly, and the hearse got stuck in the snow.
The pallbearers carrying the casket. Uncle Justin, Uncle Jason, Uncle Kent, Lakota (Cousin Chelsy's fiance), Seth and Cousin Baird were the pallbearers.
The casket next to the headstone and Old Grandma's four children standing in the background: Grandpa Dennis, Aunt Cathy, Uncle Brent and Uncle Doug.
We made a quick stop at Bill Squires' house (Winnie had loudly announced, "I need to go potty!" right before the dedicatory prayer, so he let use their facilities since they live so close to the cemetery) and headed back to Idaho Falls for a luncheon at the church where we shot a few family pictures.
Jason, Seth, Rachel, Dennis, Susan and Kent.
Rebekah, Winnie, Andrea, Analee, Seth, Miriam.
Just for fun: Winnie, Charlotte, Miriam and Emma.
The four kids recreated an old photo.
And then had to reenact it with Dennis as the centerpiece (and with Justin's help).
Lately we've been trying to visit Old Grandma as often as we could. The girls always looked forward to petting Roscoe, avoiding the bird, eating Old Grandma's treats, playing with the bins of toys and telling Old Grandma about their lives. Analee even brought the uke in and played "Go Tell It on the Mountain" for her, and the girls, Grandma Susan and I signed "Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains" for her.
It's a sweet experience getting to know one's predecessors, and it's a bittersweet experience seeing them pass. But because death is simply a part of life, it gives us the great opportunity of teaching our girls about God's great plan and bearing our testimonies. We'll miss Old Grandma, but it's been a pleasure sharing our lives with her.
To see more pictures from the funeral, click here.
