40 Years

Yesterday marked an important day in our family - my parents anniversary and the starting of our family! 40 years ago my 18 year old mom and 19 year old day (not Mormons yet) got married much to the dismay and possible dislike of their parents. My Grannie (Mama's Mom) told her as she was about to walk down the aisle that she didn't have to do it - we are all very glad that she went through with it.
(Sorry I don't have a single picture of just the two of them - we will work on that when I am home in July!)

So what do you get in 40 years?
* living in 12 houses
* moving cities 11 times
* being a member of the church 33 years
* 9 wonderful children (of course I am bias I am one of them) - Mandy, Nathan, Asia, Mary Ann, Cyndi, Bob, Donna, Kathie, Shelly
* providing great educations for all those kids
* 20 grandkids and 1 on the way
* countless friends
* countless acts of services
* countless church callings
* a temple sealing (in fact 7 really)
* more dogs and cats than I can count
* living in Europe, Southeast Asia, and all over the US
* losing both Grandma's
* losing a baby
* teaching their children to love, serve, work hard

I could go on and on but one of the things that is most important to me is always providing a loving, warm, safe and welcome home that we could call home even if life does sometimes go wrong, take unexpected paths, or we lose people we love and cherish.

Thanks for being such great examples to all of us!