Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Life As We've Known It....40th Anniversary Tribute







Wow! We just celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary on Sunday, March 20, 2011! The years have just literally flown by and I'm in shock almost when I see the "40th" in print. Amazing!



We celebrated with all of our children and spouses at a lovely dinner at Biaggi's Italian Restaurant at the Gateway. Thanks guys! It was just so wonderful to have you all there (except Jill & Chris who are vacationing in Florida) to celebrate this mementous occasion with us.



It's been a time to reflect on the years gone by.



Here are some thoughts: Disneyland. Madly in love. First home. Small. Harrison Avenue. Heart-shaped tub. Zions Bank. Finishing College. Marine Corp. Quantico Va. First child. Beautiful daughter, Jill. May 30, 1972. 8 lbs. 2 oz. Joy. Holy labor! 24 hours. Blessings begin! Belleau Wood Apts. Noisy Neighbor. Vietnam. Washington D. C. on 4th of July. National Mall, Nixon, Watergate. War ends. Graduation Basic School. Jacksonville, N. C. First house. Great friends, Pat & Al Harris. Biggest snow storm ever! Grandma Murdock sick. Barstow, Ca. Base Housing. Clark & Anne Burt. Hot. Swimming. Golfing. Supply Officer. Pregnant. Swimming. First son. John Jacob. 7 lbs. 3 oz. Handsome boy. Joy. July 14, 1973. Dad's buddy. Honey-dipped pacifiers. Laundry room. Smart. Imaginative. Toehead. Loved Barstow. Hot. Thrifty Drug Store. 25 cent ice cream cones. McDonald's fish sandwiches. Trips to Anaheim. Grandma Murdock passes away. August 1973. Human Relatins School San Diego. Me & kids alone for four months. Hard. Honorable discharge. Home to Hillcrest Avenue, SLC. 1974. Good to be home. Family grows. Second daughter. Such Happiness. Erin Elizabeth December 20, 1975. 7 lbs. 9 oz. Spunky. Only two hands, three kids. Rio Grande Railroad. Engineer. Roper yard. Engines. Mall trips. Sugarhouse Park. Roscoe. Running. Thorn Birds. Roots. My Turn on Earth. Saturday's Warrior. Moved. 940 East 1500 South. Bountiful, UT. Love. Great neighbors. Many friends. Home forever. Lake Powell. Camping. Cheyenne. Dog pound numerous times. Number two son born. Bradford Johnson. March 30, 1978. Beautiful boy. Blessed. Miracle. Car Accident. Victory Road. Head on @ 75 mph. Car totaled. Lives spared. Great works to do. Lucky. Bounced around in the waves. Bruiser. Scabby forehead. Sings. Star Wars forever. Happy boy. Sweet. Curly brown hair. Building greenhouses. Sea Ray. Skiing. Pineview. Kentucky Fried Chicken. Barnes Family. Holbrook Family. Memories. Pregnant again! Twins!! Sunday, November 2, 1980. Sad day. Happy day. One lived. One did not. Daughters. Julia Ann, 8:02 a.m. 4 lbs. 14 oz. Not alive. Kristina Marie, 8:03 a.m. 4 lbs. 7 oz. Breathing. Beautiful. Small. Elation. Pure joy. C-section. Ouch! Sweet girl. Tiny. Wonderful. Graveside service. Tiny box. Redwood Memorial Estates. Sleep sweet girl. Til we meet agian. Indiana here we come. New adventure. Outside the box. Carmel. Count Fleet Court. Moved in November 2, 1982. Fishers Ward. Bishop. YW President. Five kids. Are we done? Hmmm. We'll see. Humidity!! Green. Fireflies. Little bodies covered in green goo. Bright. Football. Champion players. Boys discover the turf. So much fun. Dance teams. Stars. Tornado watches. Green skies. Indy 500! David Allen. Lots of Friends. Village Farms ponds. Lightening Storms. Brad flying through the air. Almost struck. Westfield Schools. Sassy teenagers. Rough. What? It's a girl!! Our sunshine....Lindsay Suzanne, February 2, 1983! 8 lbs. 8 oz. Amazed at the world. Pure sweetness. Another toehead. Mr. Bluebird on My Shoulders. Forehead stitches. Bravest girl in the world. Fearless. Self-taught swimmer. Uh oh, pool cleared....there's been an accident! Our Lulu. Dandelion sniffer. Yellow nose. Revelation. There's a boy. NO! I'm done!! Body tired. Finances stretched. So many kids. So little time! Job offer. Detroit, Michigan? Why not! Great job! Great pay! Dave, Jill, Jake move January 1989 move. Left behind. Baby due in February. Commute on weekends. Harrison High School. Baby Boy born February 18, 1989. Spencer David. 7 lbs 9 oz.No surprise. Promise fulfilled. Caboose!! Done! Fini! Infinite Joy! Perfect addition. Happy boy! Adorable. Laughter. Silly. Buddy. Companion. Unique. Adored. Thank you for knowing what our family needed. April 1989. Michigan here we come. Interesting. No likey. Boss unethical. Not for us. Sad. How can we move the kids again? Broke news. Back to Utah. Kids supportive. Poor Jill & Jake. High School move. Brave and good. Home to Utah August 1989. Bountiful Blvd. Home. Short Stay. Mueller Park 7th Ward. 1196 East 1850 South. Bountiful. Children raised. Growth. Great adults. Proud parents. Grandparents. What a Joy!! Fulfilling. Full circle. Laughter. Ryan, Kaitlyn, Roxy, Jackson, Julia, Ollie, Ellie, Zeke, Sam, Sydney, Sawyer, Cody, Liam! Our crowning glory! Empty Nesters. March 2011. Just the two of us. We end as we began. Two. So much of life ahead!



The Best 40 years ever!! We've experienced it all and wouldn't change a thing! Thanks for the memories!! We love you all!



2 comments:

C.LEE said...

Congratulations! 40 years is so awesome and you guys are such a great couple! I look up to both of you so much!

Ernie said...

I love this mommy! I got teary eyed....I love you guys so much. Thank you for all the loving memories! We r lucky to have you.