My Family

I created this page for this challenge. The papers, stitching and scallop ribbon are all from the DSM CDs.

I'M A LIAR!!!!!!! (Customizing Blogs)

How long has it been since I said I would post the fourth tutorial for Customizing Blogs for Dummies? Geez. I'm sorry I haven't kept my promise to post it forever ago. The last tutorial has to do with changing out all of the images. I'll post more later but here is the main part of the final tutorial:

Look through your HTML code for any URL's. Copy those URLs into your address bar to see what they are. You can then copy those pictures onto your computer, then put them in Photoshop and change them. I usually just find out what size the picture was and then I replace that picture completely with something new that is created the exact same size.

Once you create your new images, you can upload them to a place like http://www.photobucket.com/, copy the URL and put it in your HTML code (replacing the old URL). Note: Make sure that Photobucket doesn't resize your images or it won't look right on your blog.

You can also simply delete the URLs you find in your HTML code you don't like. You don't have to replace it if you like that spot blank.

Here is a link to the last tutorial.

A Treasure

My amazing Aunt Marilyn Myers (my Grandpa Park's sister) has done a lot of work on genealogy and has shared it with all of us. She makes sure everyone gets CDs and books of everything she has. It's the most amazing treasure and a very generous gift of her time and talents. I've been able to receive a few CDs and books but most go to her brothers and sisters and their children (including my grandpa and my mom). This week I borrowed all of my grandpa's CDs and loaded them onto my computer. It's been fun looking through everything.

Here is a very small sample of what I found. How cool is this?



This is a picture of my Great Grandma Park. Isn't she beautiful?



This picture makes me laugh. It totally reminds me of Kiddie Kandids. The photographer could have been rich off this idea.



I think these pictures are precious. So often everyone looks so serious in the old pictures. I just loved seeing this tender picture of this mother and baby. The one of the girls with the dolls is adorable too. My cute little girl would have been so happy playing with them.



About 6 years or so ago I made my aunt Marilyn a scrapbook album. Not the scrapbook, just the album. Marilyn couldn't have made me feel better because she created an entire scrapbook for that album and scanned in copies of it for everyone. Her scrapbook is INCREDIBLE! Here are a few pictures from that album.

This is the cover I made. I just started a challenge based on this on my website. Click here for info.



This is the inside cover:



Here are a few of Marilyn's pages:









Isn't Marilyn incredible? She is so generous and I'm so grateful that I get to benefit from her kindness. My Grandpa Thorup is very involved with family history too. He's given me some really neat books he's put together too. I will have to share them another time. He even helped me with my wedding scrapbook. So cool!!

My Grandma Park also put together a neat book I've really enjoyed reading today. It's called, "My Heritage" and is subtitled, "This is what makes me who I am". She put together single page histories of her parents and grandparents back to the early 1800's. It's really easy to read which makes it fun. If any of you are interested putting together a history book I really recommend my grandma's format. It starts with a letter from her, then a pedigree chart. Next comes all of the single page histories she wrote with each couple's accompanying family group chart. Each history has a picture. It's really cool. The oldest histories are combined between couples on a single page.

Deep Utah Roots

So, I knew my roots were strong in Utah but *wow* they are REALLY strong. I've been extra interested in my family history in the past couple weeks after visiting Keith's grandma. I helped her (re)load genealogy programs onto her computer and decided to load them on mine when I got home. I've always been interested in family history but never did much more than read the histories from time to time. PAF 5 is actually kind of fun.

Here are five generations, starting with me.



Many of the 6th and 7th generations were Mormon pioneers who faced terrible persecution for their religion. They were forced out of many places by angry mobs and eventually went all the way to Utah to get away from it all. One grandmother was so sick she couldn't move. An angry mob kept coming back and finally set her house on fire. Fortunately others pulled her out in time. Another set of my grandparents walked to Utah with their tiny children, pushing their things in handcarts. This set of grandparents were in the Willey Handcart company which was caught in some terrible blizzards. Many many people died from the cold and lack of food on that trip.

These days most people are so tolerant of different religions (at least in countries like the US) that its hard to believe there was a time when so many people would torture, kill and persecute others just because they believed a *tiny* bit different. Incredible. Can you imagine being a Jew in Europe only 60-70 years ago?

Here is a breakdown of where my ancestors are from. No wonder my skin is so pale :)

4 generations of my family have all lived in Utah with exception to one grandma who lived in Idaho.

5 generations ago most of my ancestors were born in Utah. There are two that were born in Denmark and two more that were born in England.

6 generations ago, all but one of my great great great grandparents made it to Utah. This generation was born between about 1822 and 1860. That means a lot of them where Mormon pioneers. Some were very young when they came. Four of these grandparents were born in Utah but the rest were born in Denmark (4), England (10), Pennsylvania (2), Scotland (2), NY (1), Missouri (1), Canada (1), Nauvoo (2), Iowa (1), Wales, (2) and Maine (1).

7 generations ago (my generation being the first, my parents the second) many of my ancestors were Mormon pioneers that came to Utah. 21 of my great great great great grandparents were born in England, 12 of those came to Utah. 7 were born in Scotland and 5 of them came to Utah. 4 were born and died in Wales, 8 were born and died in Denmark. 1 was from Ireland and came to Utah. The rest came to Utah or died along the way from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Tennessee and Kentucky.

My grandparents have told me some of my ancestors were royalty, and one grandpa was the captain of either the Mayflower or one of the other two ships. I can't quite remember.

Powerful Story

Wow. This story is powerful. Here is the full article if you want to read it.



Because life is fragile and death inevitable, we must make the most of each day.

There are many ways in which we can misuse our opportunities. Some time ago I read a tender story written by Louise Dickinson Rich which vividly illustrates this truth. She wrote:

“My grandmother had an enemy named Mrs. Wilcox. Grandma and Mrs. Wilcox moved, as brides, into next-door houses on the main street of the tiny town in which they were to live out their lives. I don’t know what started the war between them—and I don’t think that by the time I came along, over thirty years later, they remembered themselves what started it. This was no polite sparring match; this was total war. …

“Nothing in town escaped repercussion. The 300-year-old church, which had lived through the Revolution, the Civil War, and the Spanish War, almost went down when Grandma and Mrs. Wilcox fought the Battle of the Ladies’ Aid. Grandma won that engagement, but it was a hollow victory. Mrs. Wilcox, since she couldn’t be president, resigned [from the Aid] in a huff. What’s the fun of running a thing if you can’t force your enemy to eat crow? Mrs. Wilcox won the Battle of the Public Library, getting her niece, Gertrude, appointed librarian instead of Aunt Phyllis. The day Gertrude took over was the day Grandma stopped reading library books. They became ‘filthy germy things’ overnight. The Battle of the High School was a draw. The principal got a better job and left before Mrs. Wilcox succeeded in having him ousted or Grandma in having him given life tenure of office.

“When as children we visited my grandmother, part of the fun was making faces at Mrs. Wilcox’s grandchildren. One banner day we put a snake into the Wilcox rain barrel. My grandmother made token protests, but we sensed tacit sympathy.

“Don’t think for a minute that this was a one-sided campaign. Mrs. Wilcox had grandchildren, too. Grandma didn’t get off scot free. Never a windy washday went by that the clothesline didn’t mysteriously break, with the clothes falling in the dirt.

“I don’t know how Grandma could have borne her troubles so long if it hadn’t been for the household page of her daily Boston newspaper. This household page was a wonderful institution. Besides the usual cooking hints and cleaning advice, it had a department composed of letters from readers to each other. The idea was that if you had a problem—or even only some steam to blow off—you wrote a letter to the paper, signing some fancy name like Arbutus. That was Grandma’s pen name. Then some of the other ladies who had the same problem wrote back and told you what they had done about it, signing themselves One Who Knows or Xanthippe or whatever. Very often, the problem disposed of, you kept on for years writing to each other through the column of the paper, telling each other about your children and your canning and your new dining-room suite. That’s what happened to Grandma. She and a woman called Sea Gull corresponded for a quarter of a century. Sea Gull was Grandma’s true friend.

“When I was about sixteen, Mrs. Wilcox died. In a small town, no matter how much you have hated your next-door neighbor, it is only common decency to run over and see what practical service you can do the bereaved. Grandma, neat in a percale apron to show that she meant what she said about being put to work, crossed the lawn to the Wilcox house, where the Wilcox daughters set her to cleaning the already-immaculate front parlor for the funeral. And there on the parlor table in the place of honor was a huge scrapbook; and in the scrapbook, pasted neatly in parallel columns were Grandma’s letters to Sea Gull over the years and Sea Gull’s letters to her. Though neither woman had known it, Grandma’s worst enemy had been her best friend. That was the only time I remember seeing my grandmother cry. I didn’t know then exactly what she was crying about, but I do now. She was crying for all the wasted years which could never be salvaged.”

May we resolve from this day forward to fill our hearts with love. May we go the extra mile to include in our lives any who are lonely or downhearted or who are suffering in any way. May we “[cheer] up the sad and [make] someone feel glad.” May we live so that when that final summons is heard, we may have no serious regrets, no unfinished business, but will be able to say with the Apostle Paul, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith."

Edit

Below I wrote eating carbs and proteins together make you hungrier. I meant it fills you up more so you ARE NOT as hungry. Ha ha.

Fitness Update

It's been fun posting these updates because I keep finding friends who want to do this with me. I'm also really into accountability. I want people to notice if I don't do what I say I'm going to.

In four weeks I have lost 10 pounds and I'm wearing smaller sized clothes. Yay. My body fat hasn't changed much in two weeks which made me worried but my coach said not to worry because all my other numbers are coming down. He said I was doing good, and I think I am too. I'm just really motivated by the body fat percentage.

I'm really enjoying the plan I'm on. It's not completely easy but its definitely not that hard.

This week I only have to go to the gym three times. Each of those three days I'll lift weights (as hard as I can) and do 15 minutes on the elliptical. That's it. I thought I would have to be doing more cardio by now but I'm completely happy not having to. My THF coach (Danny) said I can burn just as many calories lifting weights if I lift really hard... and I am! It's exhausting. Exhausting in a good way. I'm only lifting for about a half hour each day though. Not a big deal. This week for my cardio I'm supposed to do the elliptical machine for one minute super slow, then one minute super fast and hard, and on and on for 15 minutes. That was a good workout. I actually loved it. Gina and I did it together today (we missed you Jennifer) and it was kind of fun. Normally the cardio machines are SO BORING, but this way wasn't. It was harder but that's better than being bored in my book.

My meals are about the same as what I posted several weeks ago. I'm not eating the same things but I have the same types of things. Heavier carbs with protein and fruit at breakfast, mid-morning and lunch. My afternoon snack is a yummy protein bar that tastes like candy - yum. My dinner is lighter carbs, protein and veggies. Last, I eat a little bit of protein before bedtime. Notice, each meal combines carbs and proteins. Apparently it's really important to eat carbs and proteins together so you get the full benefit of the foods and you don't feel as hungry. The only exception is late at night. You don't want to go to sleep after eating carbs, but you do want protein because it helps build or repair (I don't know) your muscles while you sleep.

My favorite morning snack so far is yogurt, a plum and a tablespoon on lowfat granola. Danny told me about this yogurt at Smiths called Krogers Carb Master. It is so yummy and super super low everything. Check it out.

Gina, I'm going to miss working out with you. It's been a lot of fun.
Jennifer, you are the best! I owe you so much for pushing me along this year. You are a great friend.

1st Grade

According to Luke, his first day of school was great! I'm so happy for him. What a relief. I've been nervous. Maybe not nervous as much as anxious. Anxious to know he was going to be happy.

On the way out the door today, he was really cute checking off everything on his mind. In a very serious voice he listed off the things he remembered he needed for school, and then told me he thought he had it all and was good to go. So cute!!!! When we got to school, Jaclyn his best friend from last year, found him, gave him a hug and held his hand. They hold hands a lot. Ha ha. Tanner and Zoe found him next and I got the group shot you see above. From left to right: Zoe, Tanner (Luke's cousin), Jaclyn and Luke.

Zoe gave Luke the biggest compliment last year. I was talking to her one day, while volunteering at the school, and asked if she was friends with Luke. She told me yes, but she wasn't his girlfriend. According to her, she and Jaclyn had a fight in the beginning of the year over who would be Luke's girlfriend and Jaclyn won. Ha ha. I wanted to burst out laughing but I kept my calm. It's all for the best. She and Tanner became boyfriend/girlfriend and since Tanner is Mr. Popular, that's a big compliment to her. For the record, I do NOT encourage this boyfriend/girlfriend thing but Luke absolutely adores Jaclyn and I'm glad he has a good friend (even if it's a hand holding friend). It will be a sad day when one of them finds out the other has cooties.

School

Luke's first full day of school is this Tuesday. Tomorrow we get to meet with his teacher. I'm nervous and excited for Luke to start school. Megan gets to start preschool next week. She is really excited so I'm excited for her. Poor Luke is not excited for school. I hope he can adjust to a full day of school quickly because he has no other choice.

Here are some first day pictures from other years. Megan didn't get to go to school in 2006, but I couldn't leave her out of the picture.








By the way... we just got back from a great vacation with my side of the family. We went to the lake. Somehow I forgot my camera (geez!) but Angie got some pictures and posted them on her blog. Click here if you want to see.

Just For Fun

Here are some of my favorite pictures from MSNBC's picture stories. Since the first couple days of the Olympics I haven't watched much of the games on TV. I've seen a few clips on youtube or MSNBC but not much. I really love the Olympics but there is just too much to watch, isn't there? Some of these sports really fascinate me. More than anything though... I love looking through the pictures. I would absolutely love to be a photographer for the Olympics or at the very least be talented enough to be a photographer worthy of the Olympics. I enjoy the stories behind several of these photos but I'm mainly posting them because I love how artistic and beautiful these pictures are.







Does anyone know I did the high jump my first year in high school at Highland HS? I wasn't any good but I enjoyed learning that sport and working out with a coach. I got to participate a little bit in the shotput, discus and long jump too. I was better at those sports but we didn't concentrate on those for some reason. I got to participate a little bit in the shotput, discus and long jump too. I was better at those sports but we didn't concentrate on those for some reason. I ran track and played volleyball too. When I moved to Cottonwood HS I didn't know about volleyball try outs until it was half way done. I didn't make the team and it crushed me. I didn't try out for anything again. I really regret that. I regret that I let my pride stop me from trying something else. I really loved being in sports at Highland and have always missed it.

When I fail at things now, I try to remember how much I missed by giving up in high school. Remembering that helps me want to push harder and be better. I now know that you have to fail to succeed, so bring on the failure so I can succeed faster!





Diving is one of my favorite sports to watch.



Moms are awesome!



What an emotional moment. I loved watching this.











I love the colors and everything about this picture. I especially love that the photographer was able to get above the group.



I am totally impressed with the athlete's muscles. Wow.





This is an awesome picture. I love the green, red and white.



I want to know what she is thinking.









I really love this sport too. In a way it's kind of silly to have a jumping contest but I LOVE it!







Again, I wish I could be the photographer. Being the amazing athlete would be great too :)

Changes, Changes, and More Changes

Changing the blog style again! Ha ha. Well, I'm certainly learning a lot.

The last blog style was driving me nuts because it was too busy for my taste. I *think* this is more of my style. Clean and simple. I'm sure I'll make more changes though ;)

Rocks

We went to a rock shop in Vernal. It was a lot of fun. I love rocks. I used to collect them when I was little and I loved going to rock shops on our vacations. I think (but I'm not sure) we first started going in rock shops because my Grandma Thorup wanted turquoise or opals but eventually it was me asking to go to. My kids love rocks too too, although I didn't really know that until this weekend. Vernal, UT is called Dinosaurland, so this rock shop also had lots of neat dinosaur bones. Fun.

We bought some geodes and had a blast breaking them open when we got home. Geodes are ugly on the outside but really pretty inside. Here is a link to some really pretty geode pictures. Here is a link to a place you can buy little geodes to crack open like we did. I let Luke use the hammer and crack them open. He LOVED it! I've wanted to do this since I was little, so this was a lot of fun for me too.





Megan was in heaven with the rock bin. Here are the rocks she chose. I brought these to church and she was entertained looking at them almost the whole time. I think being able to delight in the beauty of a few small rocks is a very healthy positive thing.





Now I want to go find my own geodes. I think it would a fun adventure for the kids. I'm sure there are lots of places to find them in Utah. In a quick google search I found a place to go called Dugway Geode Beds. Another place I think would be fun to take the kids is U-Dig Fossils near Delta, UT. I heard about it while watching the Travel channel a long time ago. It's a place where you can dig up fossils. I'm pretty sure you only get trilobites. But I remember getting a trilobite at a rock shop when I was little, and I thought it was so cool to have a fossil from 500 million years ago. Anyone want to go with me to either place?

Vernal Grandmas

The kids and I went to Vernal, UT to visit their great grandmas (on Keith's side) this weekend. Luke asks to go all the time so we finally went even though Keith couldn't go. It was a great trip. We often take the 7 hour round trip drive in one day, but we decided to stay and I'm so glad because we had a great time.

Here is a scrapbook page of Grandma Pope's house. This is from a trip a couple years ago, but the rest of the pictures are from this weekend. I put this layout in the Back to School CD.



Emil and Grandma Pope were great to be with. I didn't get any pictures of Emil this time but I have some really nice ones from previous trips. I'll have to post those later. Grandma Pope is so much fun. She is really upset with the neighbor cats right now because she says they ate all the snakes and she really wanted the kids to be able to catch them. Oh well. She helped the kids collect all sorts of things to throw in her canal and they had a great time doing that.









Grandma Oaks isn't doing very well. It's so hard to hold a conversation with her anymore but we still enjoyed being with her. The kids were really sweet and gave her plenty of hugs. She has such a radiant smile when the kids hug her. It makes me happy.





This isn't the most flattering picture of Megan and her grandma but I wanted to post it because I was shocked how much they looked alike in this picture.



This last picture melts my heart. Luke is such a sweet brother and I love that he let his sister lay on him for the movie.