Gotta love my Carson!

I have to add a photo of Carson too! This is where he had been the last month (not on the car) but outside shoveling snow. He feels so big and important. He shoveled the neighbors the other day and earned $5. But I also have to add the funniest question that he asked a while back. He said, "Mom, are the pioneers still walking!" Darin and I busted out laughing for a good five minutes.

Snow Day

Had to capture some cute pictures of my Chelsea while Carson was at school. She looked so cute in her pink hat. Some of the funny things she has said lately are:
* "Mom, I ate 2 pounds of ounces of chocolate milk!"
* After just using the hand sanitizer in the car she said, "Mom, my hands are clean cause I had the appetizer!"

Ma-Ma

Can you say cute!

Backward

To understand the whole event, you might want to read a few posts down first. Sorry!

Giving

These are thoughts that have been running through my head throughout the month of December that I wanted to share. Christmas morning was a day that I have been looking forward to for a long, long time. I even have an image of my mind of how I thought it would play out. I saw in my mind of maybe where I would've stood ect. Does that make sense? As Christmas morning came and all the presents were opened I had to pull the classic Carver tradition "Well, look what is hiding back here!" So I found the lone present and with my heart already pounding gave it to my dad. The anticipation was so great that I felt as though I wanted to jump out of my own skin. It was the wierdest feeling that i have ever felt. I had so many emotions going through me that I couldn't contain my tears. Well, I have never gave so unselfishly before, never worked sooooo hard on something for someone else. That moment of me sitting on a chair and my dad handling the box that inside lay a book of his mother and her life and the thought that he had no idea. Not even the slightest hint of what I was doing. He didn't even know that you could publish books this way. That was definately a moment that will stay with me forever. I was focused on him that morning and could've cared less what I got for Christmas. I know now that that is what Christmas is all about. Giving.


Sharing the hug that followed the opening of the book was one of the greatest things I have ever experienced. I can still feel my dad sobbing on my shoulder. As I hugged him I whispered in his ear, "Im sorry that you lost your mother when you were so young. She was an awesome person." With tears spilling on my shoulders he replied, "It hurts, you don't know how much it hurts. I cried so many times. I cried and cried." To hear my dad say those words to me and to share that with my dad is a moment between us that I will cherish forever. That made everything worth it. Everything.

Opening "the book"

I'm Back!

Okay, Im back...finally! It has been a hard few months and where to start Im not sure. If I type everything that has gone on I will be here next month still typing so I will try and highlight the month of December.
One of the main reasons I quit blogging for a while was that I was afraid that the secret would get out. The secret of "the book" as it is known now. For those of you who don't know what "the book" is I will explain a little.
Are you ready?
This turned into a 6-month project but was so worth my time.
To save time I am copying what I wrote in "the book" under preface. This explains all of it.

When I was younger I remember seeing pictures of my paternal grandma. It was a
face that I didn't recognize. I didn't think much about her, for I only knew her name and that she had red hair. Now that I am in a different stage in my life, married and with three young children I have a little different perspective on life then I did back then. I hadn't thought much of my grandma in years until I came across a handwritten letter addressed to Ray and Violet Dewey. The Dewey's were friends and neighbors to my grandma and grandpa when they lived in New Plymouth, Idaho. They were taking care of her newborn baby while she was mentally ill at St. Benedicts Hospital in Ogden, Utah. The letter was dated May 13, 1952 and I realized that this was probably the last thing she wrote before she passed away. As I read these precious words I couldn't hold back my tears. My heart ached for her and for the pain that she felt as she longed to be with her family again. After reading that letter I instantly wanted to know more about her and her life. That night we spent many hours reading letters and looking at old photos of Virginia and learned
just a little of the amazing person that she was. It was then that I realized that this information was priceless and didn't belong in a box. I wanted all her family to be able to enjoy the legacy she left. This book is a result of what has been gathered together in the past 6 months. I am not an expert as writing but have tried my very best to relay the information as it was told by Virginia herself and what has been written about her life. I've done this in love and have tried to be sensitive to those who will turn these pages.