In Loving Memory...

About two weeks before Brad and I were to be married, I received a phone call at work. I was told that Grandma wasn't doing well and if I wanted to say good-bye I should probably come to Idaho. So Beth, Coral and I hopped into Coral's car (Dodge Charger) and drove to Idaho. We went directly to Jerome where Grandma was in the hospital. We were very surprised when we walked into her room to see her sitting up on the edge of the bed facing the window. There had been several occaisions when we would get the call that Grandpa wasn't doing well and he just kept hanging in there. He was on Hospice for an entire year before he passed away. I thought we would have a little more time with Grandma.The nurse came in and helped her lie back down. We each took turns giving her a hug. I leaned over to her and said, "I love you, Grandma," to which she replied....."PROVE IT!" So we knew that her mind was still in tact and she was still Grandma. It was her body that had quit working. Her kidneys had shut down and she was filling up with fluid. There was nothing the doctors could do for her except to help her be comfortable. We sat in silence before we decided that she needed music. We didn't have any so we decided to sing her some hymns (sorry Grandma). She was probably grateful when other family began to arrive and the singing stopped. Mom and Dad came and Dad's brother Joel and his family. I think there was a sense of urgency for Stephanie to get there as I know that it would mean a lot to her if Grandma could meet her newest Great Granddaughter before leaving this earth. Stephanie arrived with Alexis and baby Sawyer. Grandma passed away the next evening.

Grandma and Grandpa Chambers celebrated 50 years of marriage on September 7, 1990.

Several months ago I had the opportunity to visit Grandma at DeSano Place in Shoshone and make balloons for her and the other residents. Grandma is sporting a stylish monkey hat.

Baby Sawyer Jane and her Great Grandmother met for the first time. Grandma seemed to be so alert at that moment and even Sawyer seemed happy to meet her Great Grandma.

Okay....so this pic is actually at Grandpa's Funeral about 27 months earlier. Grandpa had served in the U.S. Army and was in the U.S. Navy during WWII.

My cousin Ben was home from Iraq for a time when Grandpa passed away and had the great priveledge of presenting Grandpa's flag to Grandma. It was an emotional moment to watch as Ben stepped back after handing Grandma the flag with a tear in his eye and a great sense of pride on his face and saluted her.

Also at Grandpa's funeral were his younger siblings.

(left to right..Guy, Joanne, and Nellie) Aunt Nellie passed away just a week after Grandma but I was unable to attend the funeral as it was held the same weekend as my wedding.

Back to Grandma. Grandma was awesome with arts and crafts. Her hands were always busy with crocheting, quilting, and other needle work. Here Alice and Janet show off some of the things that Grandma used to make for us.

My brothers David and Lee, mingling before the services begin.

Dad, trying to be cheerful and composed while visitors greet him with condolences.

Becky and Lee sit and ponder during the viewing.

Eathan, Tiger, and Jared sit and visit during the viewing.

Family and friends gathering at the cemetery.

My cousins, nephews and brothers were the pallbearers for the service.

One by one the pallbearers laid their boutonnieres on the casket.

Mom and David visit at the Shoshone Cemetery.

Grandma and Grandpa, I love you and I miss you both.

Goin' Topless!!!

That's right.....TOPLESS!!!

We took the top off Donald's Jeep and went for a ride up Nebo Canyon.

Jaynann climbs into the Jeep "Dukes of Hazard" style with Donald near by just in case.

Everywhere we go, the facilities get a rating from the expert. Here the rating is "beautiful."

Have you ever eaten chicken with the wind in your face at 80 mph while balancing a jug of root beer on one knee and a bucket of chicken on the other? It is an adventure all by itself.

While we were still on the interstate we put the chicken bones in a bag but once we turned into nature and started up the canyon we decided we could throw the bones into nature for the critters. So Brad said, "where's the bag?" His dad replied, "just throw it outside." So Brad threw that chicken right out the top of the Jeep and into our path where we drove into it and it rested on the hood. It was hard to get a good shot of it while we were driving but there it is, the chicken on the hood.

The chicken eventually fell off but it left a crumb and while we were stopped for some photos and a leg stretch we decided to get an unblurry picture of what was left.

Utah Lake from the lookout point we stopped at.

My hubby and me.

Jaynann and myself on the back of the Jeep before heading home.

Some friends we met along the way.

And the sunset....

Brad and His Buddy!

Brad and I are both a couple of kids at heart. As a result we love to play and who better to play with...? KIDS!!

Brad has become attached to several of my nieces and nephews that live in the area but there is one nephew in particular that Brad is fond of. We call him R2. R2 and Brad are buddies because they both have something in common.....CARS!!! R2 loves anything with wheels (except roller skates because apparently those are for girls). They both love anything to do with cars.....books, pictures, games, toy cars, real cars, etc. Even motorcycles, airplanes, helicopters and boats are on the list of favorites.

So, here are a few pics of Brad and R2 doing what they love to do.

We promised R2 that once he was potty trained we would take him on the race cars. He would not ride with me because I am a girl and apparently boys go faster.

Brad has a tradition of going to the UVU car show every May at Thanksgiving Point. The new tradition is to bring his favorite little buddy that shares his passion. Here R2 is showing off the new T-shirt that Uncle Brad bought him at the car show.

Another pose in front of a pretty awesome something or other.

WOW!! Who knew this would be so much fun?

R2 was especially excited about this car because it reminded him of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!

R2 is giving Brad a big thanks for such a fun day.

The Honeymoon!!!

We spent four wonderful days at Moon Lake Resort in the high Uinta Mountains of Utah. We left the camera crew at home so unfortunately we only have one picture of the both of us together (courtesy of the guy who helped us launch the rented boat).

The Fantastic Honeymoon Resort!!!

The Honeymoon Suite

(Honey)Moon Lake

One of the highlights of our trip was going out on the lake.

Brad had so much fun driving the boat.

After a few hours of tooting around the lake looking for fish to catch, the sky began to darken.

It began raining so we headed back toward shore. Soon it was hailing and no matter how fast we rowed and paddled, we could not seem to get ahead of the storm. The sun was shining again by the time we docked but we were so wet and cold that we decided to call it a day.

Brad Warming by the a fire that I built. (I'm such a pyro!)

Brad was convinced that every camping trip needs a foil dinner. I was so not impressed with my version of one. I'm pretty sure I would have been on the brink of starvation if it hadn't of been for the delicious s'mores we had later.

It wasn't a total waste though......Meet Wilbur. He ate pretty much anything we dropped.

This is me by some logs.....not sure what they were doing there but decided to get a picture next to them anyway.

Brad building me a teepee for the Indian Chicken Dance.

True Story...About a week before the wedding we went to the county offices to get our marriage license. My wonderful hubby, fiancee at the time, loves to be random and loves to embarrass me. As we sat there waiting for the lady to process our paperwork, Brad took full advantage of the little silent moment. He said to her, "And on the honeymoon, I'm going to dress her up like a chicken. Then I'm going to put on my Indian costume and chase her around." I was mortified. This woman processes marriage licenses every day for a living. Hopefully, she's heard worse.

Out for a little hike in the woods.

Going for a spin in the boat.

(unfortunately my antique camera has no audio.)

THE BIG DAY!!!

This is my absolute favorite picture from that day!!!

Just the two of us.

My Hunka Hunka Burnin' Love

(see what I mean?)

The Mommas and the Papas
(and us of course)

Hers

His

Ours