Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Witch's Brew

It's My Witch's Brew luncheon and all my guests needed to bring was a witch hat and a cackle. They did not disappoint!
Front: Christina Barlow, Si Foster, Jo Cash, Kimi Farley, Kathleen Newman, me. Back:  Diane Lake, Jana Uryan, Kim Johnston, Rachelle Kofford, Karen Capson, Mel Evans 
Diane, Mel, Karen, Kim, Jo and Si helped with the food and we served soups, rolls, veggies, apples with carmel dip and decadent Desserts. 
Kathleen with scare on 
The food was displayed "Mr Body" style. 
Just sitting around chatting, telling favorite Halloween memories and laughing a lot was just what this Witch needed. I'm feeling almost like my old self again. Gathering people makes me so happy! 





Thursday, October 22, 2015

Alfie Lyle

Watching his car show
Jumping on the tramp
Having Alfie here for 5 days has been an adventure.
He loves cars, the cars disney show, making car sounds, driving  his remote control car, the big trucks working on our street, balls, basketball, saying "Basketball", watching football, saying, "football",  throwing balls, stuffed animals, dogs, dog shows,  marshmallows, apples, his binkie and his "bre"....that's his blanket.
Alfie is a good sleeper and he is happy doing "his thing" and jabbering all day long.  He loves playing with and terrorizing our dog and throwing things at her.  It's a love/hate relationship that's for sure.
Big trucks working on our street
Alfie with his remote control car

Stickering his book and then his body
Watching football with Poppa

Playng on the swing set
Balls, balls and more balls
I have loved spending my days with this darling boy....and I'm reminded how difficult it is to get dressed when a toddler is around.

Monday, October 19, 2015

My thoughts on this gorgeous fall day.....

Just some catching up to do.....

It's been a wild week around here.  Fall break we didn't do much but hang out at home and take turns holding our new baby Tayla.
Oct 12....
Monson and Lexi are protective, darling parents who are absolutely head over heals in love with their daughter.  It's great to watch and feel this from them.
Tayla and her DIMPLES!
I'm loving the Indian summer weather.  It's still gorgeous outside and I love being out in it.  I've started playing and loving Pickleball.  It's like a small tennis - arge ping pong type of game.  Hopefully we will have more good days in October to get on the court and play.

I'm looking forward to Halloween and Thanksgiivng . We will be doing Halloween different this year with a Dismal Dinner party at Bre and Add's home.... and we will have Cole side Thanksgiving here at my house.  We will have to clear out some couches to make room, but I'm really excited to do it.
I'm the Witch..... 

Sophia getting her witch on...trying out her Halloween costume

I'm feeling lighter.  After so many months of heaviness in my body and surrounding my heart, I really feel a lightness now.  It's easier to think about Marcie and my dad...and mom....and not have tears spring immediately to my eyes and have that choking feeling in my throat.  So...that's good.  I know my making future plans help me with this and surrounding myself with friends and family.
Me with the "Carols" and some of the cast of Sister Act at Tuacahn.
We have started meetng to go over Dad's estate and sort through his things and stuff so we can eventually sell the family home.  It's crazy to think we have been in that home since 1972.   We are going to meet on Wednesday nights for a while to work on this project.
Sophia and Alfie are rocking out...
Alfie is here for 5 days while his parents are in Disneyland with friends.  It's great to have him, and it's good for Add and Bre to get away.  Alf is at the ADORABLE stage where he is learning so much and jabbering and playing and running and laughing and cuddling and......I just love this age!

Wayne is off to China for 8 days, this Wednesday.  It's been a year since this trip, and he is looking forward to it.  We have started a Whole 30 program so the only hard thing about China now is trying to eat the Whole30 way while he is there.  Only meat, veggies and fruits and nuts...nothing else.   We have made it to day 19, so we are pretty proud of ourselves.


Friday, October 9, 2015

Tayla Addilyn is here

My heart is overflowing today...our newest family member is here.  Tayla Addilyn Welch.

She is named after Truman- Laila- Landon- Addison and Lexi's sister Kaitlyn.  If she has just half of the good qualities of all of her aunts and uncles, she will be amazing.

While Lexi was in having her c-section,  with Monson, her mom-Rebecca and Bre was photographer....Wayne, Kaitlyn and I were pacing the hallway

This is our first glimpse of this beautiful baby.

We heard her scream long before we laid eyes on her.  She has good lungs.... she actually didn't breathe for quite a while and the docs and nurses had to work with her, but once she got it figured out she was good.

She has long fingers and perfectly shaped fingernails...and ears flat to her round head.  She looks like a pretty good Monson/Lexi mix...not really like Monson's baby pics, more like he looks now...but she is a GINGER!  Can't believe it...and I hope it stays.  It might even be curly.

Tayla is straight from heaven to bring a little piece of heaven to earth.  I know that there were so many on the other side ( Mom, Dad, Marcie, Tom and countless others...) sending her off and telling her about the challenges of earth life  and about all of her crazy relatives and  how families are forever and how important unconditional love is.  We are in love!

Sunday, October 4, 2015

What's running through my mind....

A couple of experiences to think about....

I went to see the movie, The Intern, with Wayne and the Wangsgaards  the other night. It's about a company hiring a Senior Intern.  ( 70 year old man) It was a sweet, feel good movie about men's and women's roles and how they are changing and how the young can continue to learn from the old.  I really liked a lot of the movie discussions...why don't men dress up in suits any more?  Why do they have a hard time growing up and taking responsibility?  Why do we have to buy into stereotype work roles?  Why don't men use handkerchiefs any more? That's the one that got me.  As soon as the handkerchief discussion came up I felt that familiar sting in my eyes and lump in my throat and I couldn't stop crying because I missed my dad. ....He was a suit wearing, handkerchief using gentleman.   I couldn't get it together.   The rest of the movie was a tear fest for me....

I'm enjoying conference...the talks and messages are really touching me. I relly liked Sis. Marriott's who shared her family motto:  It will all work out.  This is what I feel and know is true.  Pres. Uchtdorf's on simplifying discipleship is where I live.  Elder Holland's talk about a mother's love comparing it to Christ's love, should have been my favorite...but he was telling a story about an SSA returned missionary who was struggling with his sexuality and the gospel and it just struck a negative chord in me.  I couldn't get past how this boy was able to go back on a mission all becuse of his mother's love.... I was destroyed by this example..it was so abstract from the realities of my situation.... But all I heard is if I was a better mother my boys would still be going to church and not be gay.  It's funny how I went there in my head when I really know that's not what was intended.  I had Wayne and my friend's talk me off of "the Cliff" and get my head back on straight that what Elder Holland was really talking about.  It was Mother's love their children NO MATTER WHAT.    It's interesting to me that while I was feeling all of this, and going through the made up story in my head of mother failure, I got a text out of the blue from my bishop...he wrote,  "You are that kind of Mother. "   I texted back that I wasn't feeling it and didn't like that talk.  He wrote, "Consider why out of the blue I would text you.  You are that woman.  I felt it and felt to let you know it.  I'm not given to causal texts.  It was clear to me, you are loved and known as are your children."  As I look back at this, I know this was Heavenly Father telling  me, that my mothering is okay.  That my boys are okay. That I am the best mother for my boys and YES....I do love them NO MATTER WHAT!   I am deeply grateful to have been entrusted with this unique and sacred calling of being a mother to LGBT children of our Father in Heaven.

Elder Holland said, "No love in mortality comes closer to approximating the pure love of Jesus Christ than the selfless love a devoted mother has for her child."

Sometimes when a certain topic comes up about which we feel strongly or that triggers strong emotions we can sometimes hear or see things from a different lens than that which the speaker intends.  I also think that some general conference talks take on very different meanings for different people.    I plan on listending to Elder Holland's talk again and looking for what was actually said.


While cleaning out the basement this August... I found this Brown Coach purse.  I was so excited because it's my mom's purse.  She always carreid a coach purse around and it came at a great time.  I was just feeling sad after losing Marcie and my Dad was in his death bed, and I just felt like it was a warm hug to carry this purse around and feel close to my mom.  So.... a few weeks later I'm  in my kitchen and Truman's friend Aisha says, "Hey I like your purse."  I told her thanks it was my mom's purse and  how I was so excited to be carrying it.  Aisha had a quizzical look on her face and said, "No it's not...it's mine"  I said, I'm pretty sure it's my mom's and she said, " Remember when I went to San Francisco this summer, I left a box of my stuff in your basement including that purse...... " WHAT?!?    We couldn't stop laughing..and even now when I tell this story it makes me giggle all over again. Aisha was very gracious about it and is letting me use her purse... it's rent for storing her stuff in my basement.  Even though it's Aisha's for a while it was my mom's and I needed that.

Thursday, October 1, 2015