Yep, we made that for the blog :) Seaweed, sea shells and our sandals.
Hot tubbing. I love it.
We stayed with Adam's family there in Houston and went to church with them on Sunday. So hospitable! Thank you! At dinner, we went around the table and each person told one of their fondest memories of their mother in honor of Mother's Day. I wanted the share here what I shared with them. I don't know if this is my fondest memory but it's the first thing that came to my mind:
When I was 9 years old, we moved from California to Germany. My dad had to be in Germany before the rest of us and so my mom had to make the long flight by herself with her 6 children and she was pregnant with the 7th (my baby brother, Bryant!!). We all boarded the plane and I sat next to my mom. We were sitting in front of two guys, they were probably in their mid twenties. PUNKS. They were punks. As my siblings and I situated ourselves in our seats and these guys realized that they were going to be sitting near so many kids for the entire flight, they started to complain. Loudly. I don't remember exactly what they said but I remember that it wasn't nice. They just kept complaining. It was so rude because we could hear them and we weren't even being bad kids! Not that I remember, anyway :) Finally, my mom turned around in her seat and sternly told these two guys that she didn't appreciate what they were saying and that she loved every single one of her children and that they were a huge blessing to her. Obviously I don't remember the exact words. But they apologized and there wasn't another word out of them for the rest of the flight. I just always remember that little incident and admire my mom for boldly sticking up for her children, even when it's uncomfortable. I hope that I would be the same if ever confronted with a similar situation. Thank you for your example and for your love, mom! I love you!
How fuuun! You look so cute at the beach :) And that hot tub looks amazing!!! I'd never heard that story about mom - what a great story! Mom is the best.
ReplyDeleteThat's a sweet story of your mom!
ReplyDeleteI love that story about Mom! And the beach looks awesome! My favorite pictures is the one you made for the blog. :)
ReplyDeleteyay for a fun getaway with friends!! Loved at the photos of you guys at the beach :)
ReplyDeleteand I love the tradition of sharing favorite memories of your moms...I want to do that next year! (and this year for father's day:) And your story of your mom was so sweet :) What an awesome woman!! So glad she stood up for you & your siblings :)
Hey Lauren, that is one of our unforgettable family stories! I thought I would fill you in on some of the details. We were on our way from San Francisco to Frankfurt just three days before Christmas. It was a packed flight and some people had been offered free tickets if they would wait until the next day for a flight. There was no way I wanted to do that since we had already been apart from Dad for several weeks. Somehow two of our kids had been assigned to the exit row which is never allowed, so the stewardess had to find seven people in another section of the plane that would trade with us. When we got back to where we were reassigned, the people already knew we were coming and that we had six children! Those two guys behind us just kept complaining and complaining and saying things like, "she has too many children, etc.etc!" So finally, I couldn't stand it anymore and I turned around and said, "we don't appreciate your rude comments!" And they said, "oh, we weren't talking to them." And I said, "well, they can still hear you!!" And then they shut up for the rest of the flight! And you kids were angels throughout the flight. Marie, 14 at the time, was an especially great help with the "babies" Christian (2) and Lissie (1). After we unboarded and were reunited with Dad (6 kids and two carseats in tow), a lady who had been sitting near us came up to us and commented on how good and wonderful you all were. I am always glad I had the courage to stand up for you all. And yes, I love you all dearly. Happy Mother's Day.
ReplyDeletep.s. That was in December of 1995 . . . such a long time ago!
ReplyDeleteTwo things:
ReplyDelete1.) I kept trying to figure out how I knew Katie. And then I realized that I didn't really know her but I was in the ward when she and Adam dated (and her roommate Adam's brother). Just thought I'd point that out.
2.) I think if sweet, soft spoken Lisa Allred got mad at me for something I'd be quiet the rest of the flight too. I love that she did that and I love her clarification too. You really have a wonderful family.
i kind of ADORE your little boy, especially in the floppy hat. so stinking cute!! hope you had an amazing mother's day :) I took German in high school, by the way!
ReplyDeleteAw it looks like you guys had a great time! Cole is getting so BIG and more and more handsome too! Happy mothers day! I also loved that story about your mom. So cute!
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