Happy Birthday Kristen!!

This has been the year of the un birthday. Our lives have been so crazy (and full of illness), that birthdays have come and gone. Today Kristen spoiled herself and Me too. First she got her hair trimmed, bought a couple new shirts and then took herself and me to get a pedicure. Happy Birthday Sweetheart! I love you, and I am so proud of the person you are becoming! (and thanks for the pedicure, I loved it!)

Kristen's first time

Kristen & Christi getting pedicures for Kristen's Birthday

I got Hot Pink!

Alissa Turns "21"

Time is flying by, my kids are growing up so fast. When you have babies you see yourself as a young family with lots of children, but you soon realize that they don't stay small for very long.

Breakfast at Kneaders

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Alissa (all grown up)

Yummy Food

Adam Welsh & Alissa Williams

(the AW Birthdays)

Donny and I enjoyed a great breakfast with Alissa at Kneaders, Then Alissa and her friend Adam had planned a party together. Great food of pork, rice and salads. So many of Alissa's friends.

We left early so we didn't cramp her style :-)

Kristen is "19"

Kristen & Vanessa
Best Friends & soon to be roommates

I know I am getting old, but time seems to be going so fast. Just three days after Lindsay's birthday we celebrated again. This time it was for Kristen, she turned 19 on the 23th. Where have the days gone?

Kristen is a beautiful young woman, who has the funniest laugh; she is responsible, kind and a great friend. She works hard and just finished her first year at UVU.

You'll have to ask her about her pencil dive. Love it!! Happy Birthday Kristen, sometimes without all the big fanfare and ready or not birthdays come.

Lindsay turns "4"

Lindsay, the princess of our home. Turned 4 on April 20th. She is 4 going on 16, no really. Since most of her "friends" are in High School she thinks she is as big as the rest of them. She is such a joy and blessing to our lives. Love you Lindsay - forever & ever.

A "Gift" that is hard to explain... but easy to understand

Happy Birthday Sierra "15"

on Mar 25, 2009

You're are growing into
an amazing person
I Love You.

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In 1993 we moved to Fairmont, West Virginia from California. Donny was working for Bechtel and working on a project for the FBI. The area was beautiful but the people were not very accepting. The weather always overcast it seemed and not knowing anyone I fell into a very lonely depression. At the time we had four girls with the youngest being very ill (refer to the post Happy "16th" Birthday Katie) we lived on the top of a hill with beautiful views of God's creations and yet the place I found myself was alone beyond understanding. I had a sister come up to me at church and say “You don’t belong here! Don’t be coming here thinking you’re going to change us with your California ideas” Stunned and with tears in my eyes I said “I am a member here”.

The kids seemed to adjust quickly and Donny was busy with work and church callings. Struggling with a sick child and very unhappy I soon found out that I was expecting again #5. Unprepared for such news, I hide it to the best of my ability. (My Dad already thought we had enough kids.) I carry big and out front so hiding it wasn’t going to last too long. I wondered why at that time was I to have another baby.

I knew I had to turn inward, forgetting the chaos of the Ward and world around me. I continue to search to find the help that Katie needed as my body was changing with my expanding waistline. It was soon realized what was happening, as I got bigger it seemed the hearts of those around me softened they were kinder and more loving. We were making lasting friendships, my experiences now different. At first questioning the Lord and yet all along he knew what I needed, what they needed.

Dear Sierra, You were a precious gift to me from our Heavenly Father at a time I needed it more than I realized.
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Fairmont, WV 1994

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A baby Shower for Sierra

April 7, 1994

Mommy & Sierra

Blessing Day

From my mother on my birthday

God Knows

When you are tired and discouraged from fruitless efforts…

God knows how hard you have tried.
When you’ve cried so long and your heart is in anguish…

God has counted your tears.
If you feel that your life is on hold and time has passed you by…

God is waiting with you.
When you’re lonely and your friends are too busy for a phone call…

God is by your side.
When you’ve tried everything and don’t know where to turn…

God has a solution.
When nothing makes sense and you are confused or frustrated…

God has the answer.
If suddenly your outlook is brighter and you find rays of hope…

God has whispered to you.
When things are going well and you have much to be thankful for…

God has blessed you.
When something joyful happens and you are filled with awe…

God has smiled upon you.

When you have a purpose to fulfill and a dream to follow…

God has opened your eyes and called you by name.
Remember that wherever you are or whatever you are facing…

GOD KNOWS

Thank you Mom,

I Love you

Happy Birthday Donny!

Age is a funny thing, are minds do not feel older but our body does. I think Donny looks great for "49" with very few gray hairs. I have more gray than his does! It was wonderful to have everything there, we enjoyed great food and being together. Shelby made Donny a cute pillow.

Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour

We loved going to Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour in Fig Garden Village, in Fresno, Calif when ever we found a chance like FHE, birthdays, after Stake Dances, after we had gone down Christmas Tree Lane. We loved browsing and shopping the Farrell’s Candy Store full of candy & toys. (A child’s dream) The jaw breakers came in all sizes from the size of a softball to smaller, rock candy and candy buttons in all colors. We would order hamburgers, but most of all the ice cream. What great memories I have.

It was always fun to go on your birthday you would great free sundae and all of the waiters and waitresses banging the drums and singing "Happy Birthday". I remember the player piano, the candy store, the straw hats, the menus printed on newspaper, and the drums and sirens that sounded during a birthday fest.

The Farrell's Zoo – two servers would run around with the Zoo bowl on a little stretcher and make a big commotion before dropping it off at the table. They had an old hand-cranked fire siren that sounded all the time the servers were delivering The Zoo. It was loads of ice cream and you got to take home the little plastic animals.

The Pig's Trough – was actually 2 banana splits together – If you ate all of it own your own you would be given a ribbon or a pin

The "Tin Roof" was another great sundae - with really thick hot, hot, hot dark fudge served on the side, in a tin cup, to pour over at will, and lots of roasted peanuts to toss on top. Utter Heaven.

The Boys Turned "9" - Sep 20th

Happy Birthday Devin & Derek
Devin, Linday and Derek

Some of the Sisters
Sierra, Kristen, Shelby, Katie

Devin and Derek are "9"

(We went all out on a cake. LOL)

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As life rushes by, the biggest difference we see is in our kids, that is if we are looking at all. It seems that one day you turn around and they are grown. How did that happen? I told the boys the morning of their birthday that "9 years ago today, they cut me open and ripped you out of my body", they both made a really funny face. But it was true.
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The boys had their 9th birthday on Sat the 20th. It's really hard to believe they are 9. They got a set of Walkie Talkies, great scooters, things for scouts and few other little goodies. I love my boys so much!
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(I know I have posted these pictures before, but here they are again)

This picture was taken on Sunday Sep. 19th

I went to church that day and had the boys at 1:00 am that night

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This picture was taken in the NICU; the boys are 5 days old
and this was the first time they had seen each other since birth.
It's hard to see in this picture but Devin is holding on to Derek’s arm. They missed each other! Devin stayed 5 more days and came home weighing only 3lbs 11 oz, he was so little.

Happy Birthday Nana!! "90"

Do we ever really think we will live to be 90. It's our body that ages, for most of us our mind still feels young and active. Life is a journey of experiences and lessons learned. I come from a very long line of strong, smart and opinionated women (who me?)



Whenever we get together there is lots of great food.
(The women are all great cooks too)

Nana is getting so tiny but she blew her candles out just fine

This is Marie with her four daughters

Joetta, Kay, Lois (my Mom) Paula

I added this picture from 1963, it was Thanksgiving.
Paula, Lois, Kay, Joetta and Marie
Look at how stylish they are and look at those great shoes

Christi (me), Aunt Paula and Lois (mom)

Happy Birthday Shelby "12"

Hard to believe Shelby is 12. Most of the birthday's we do are just family ones. But the 12th birthday is of lots of friends, candy, chips, soda and pizza. They played outside with squirt guns, on the slip-n- slide and in the sprinkles. They then came in for some silly games, followed with the pizza, and at last the ice cream sundaes with all the toppings and goodness (can we say Sugar overload) For the most part, I think everyone has a good time.

June 24th, 2008

The orange game

The Group eating pizza, chips and soda

Happy "16th" Birthday Katie

Watch out boys, she's old enough to date!

As we celebrate Katie's 16th Birthday today, I cannot help but to look back and reflect on her life. As we have our children we hope and pray that they will be healthy. That was not the case for Katie; to look at her today you would never know what she has been through. There is a tall tale sign, of a scar across her tummy.

To begin, Katie was 7lbs 7 ozs at birth; everything went well in the delivery and for the first few months. Until one day at church I was in Relief Society as I looked down at her on my lap she looked blue to me. We rushed her to the hospital where they found she was only getting about 75 - 80 % oxygen. This was the first day of our travels down a road of many Dr. visits, tests and eventually surgery.

The Dr. had no idea what was happening with her. The tests, so many of them, were not bringing us answers. I could list all these big worded tests and procedures she went through over the course of the next 6 months but there is no point. So to make a long story short, at 9 months old they did abdominal surgery she was so tiny, she only weighed 14 lbs 1 oz. At the same time all this was happening we had sold our house in Madera Calif. that we had built and was preparing to move to West Virginia for a job

We moved just about a week after Katie came home from the hospital. As we came to this new place, it was hard. Katie continued to be sick with many cases of pneumonia. I had no idea what to do. And to add to her suffering she fell off the stairs and broke her leg in April, she was now 11 months old.

6 months after Katie’s surgery and 3 more bouts of pneumonia, Katie had only gained 6 oz of weight. So at 14 months old she only weighted 14 lbs and 7 oz. We lived in a very tiny town, in the back woods of West Virginia. Why, were we there? The ward was not open or even very kind to us (we were outsiders there) I did not have a good Dr to care for my child so tiny and ill. Knowing our Stake President had a very large family of 9 children; he lived about 30 miles away. I called him upset and asking him who cares for his children? His wife gave me the name so I took Katie to their Dr. He was shocked to see Katie, he said “I have no idea what is wrong with this child, but she has a lack to thrive and we could loose her if we do not find out what is going on” He immediately got us in with a specialist.

Again more tests, they thought that she might have cystic fibrosis. It continued on what seemed like forever until one day, the specialist asked if he could do a special biopsy. I said yes, please do it. He took a sample of the cilia hair in Katie’s sinuses the first biopsy showed no cilia hair; so another more extensive test was needed. The second showed some cilia hair, but what few Katie had lacked the little arms that were needed to make them move properly. To understand what cilia hair does, we have it in our lungs to filter air and keep our lungs clear, we have them in our intestines to move our food along to be digested. They are in our ears and for women they are in her fallopian tubes to move the egg along and for men the tail of a sperm is a cilia hair that moves them along to find the egg. As you can see they are very important. The Dr had a friend in medical school that had this condition. “Immotile Cilia Syndrome” (very rare) that is one reason why we were there in the hills of West Virginia, to get an answer for Katie.

She was put on a high fat, high protein diet; she took long courses of antibiotics, and was on a nebulizer for breathing treatments. She was doing great, gaining weight, growing and most important staying well. Since that time expect for a few little issues she has been fine.

So as I look at Katie today so beautiful, so healthy and amazingly talented, my heart is full. I thank my Father in Heaven, for her and for sending us to West Virginia for the answers and care she needed.

As I have expressed before, (and this is for all of us) Do Not Judge. I know for a fact that we all have of our struggles, issues and trials, some seen and known and many never seen or ever known.

We need to always do our best to be loving and kind to others. Hug each other often and bear each other's burdens.


Just one of the many tests - Fall 1992

Right before Katie's surgery - Jan 1993

Leaving Valley Children's Hospital in Fresno Calif - Jan 1993

Katie with her cast after breaking her leg

April 1993 - Fairmont, WV

Happy Birthday Kristen "18"

After spending a week in Northern California on a Ballroom Dance Tour (they preformed at Senior Centers, Elementary Schools and at Great America Theme Park) Kristen and Katie returned home last night the 23rd. That meant that Kristen spent most of her 18th birthday on a tour bus. They arrived at Provo High School about 7:00 pm, giving us a little time for dinner, presents and cake. After opening a few gifts, which included a CD of music, I told her I wanted to listen to it right now, right now in her car. Kristen squealed with delight and went running to her car. Dad & Mom had a CD stereo installed in her car. What joy for a teenager!!