Happy Birthday Mom and Dad!

My parents birthdays are ten days apart, and I was neglectful of remembering my blog on my mom's birthday, but alas my dad's has come along and I remembered, so I'll combine! They're married, so they're one anyway, right?

First my mom since her birthday was first.
My mom is amazing! She is the definition of organization and time management. She has charts and lists and records of everything, to help her keep track of her 8 children, her husband, and now her 19 grandchildren, I'm sure. My fond memories of her include: drawing lessons she gave me one summer when I was in elementary school (That was part of a one-on-one time project with all of her children, and I loved learning to draw from her.); Playing with her old Barbies in her bedroom; Shopping with her and sharing the handle of the buggy as we scooted around the store; Many telephone conversations; Reading her cute poems; and more recently, her visit out to see me in 2004 even though she was scared to death of the traffic and everything. I love you Mom!

And now my dad since he's second. And today!
My dad is also amazing! He has a fun sense of humor that I think I picked up on a little. And he's fun to watch with his grandchildren. They seem to love him, too. He's very easy-going and loving. Some of my favorite memories with my dad include: going to see the Princess Bride in the theater (you might not remember, but it wasn't a box office hit. To me, this was doing something a little unusual that I knew my dad would like and being pleasantly surprised that I really liked it too.); Learning how to drive in cold Colorado mornings on the way to seminary; short and sweet father messages at Family Home Evening (Be Good); Getting lost on the way home from the airport; Talking on the telephone, in the living room, in their bedroom; Getting his kind letter to me while I was on my mission; Hearing his testimony of how much he loves my mom; Learning a few Swedish words from him when I was a kid; and so many more! I love you Papa!