Margaret

Happy Birthday to my sister Margaret!

I wanted to just write a few words about her and how great I think she is on her birthday!

Margaret is my youngest sister and someone I look up to. Even though there are 6 years between us she has taught me a lot in her life. She is passionate about the German language and about teaching. When I was first teaching Seminary and I needed advice about classroom management I called Margaret.

She is a loving person and a wonderful mother. I love to watch her care for Lydia and play with her. I am amazed at how natural all of the aspects of motherhood seem to be for her and how comfortable she seems with the demands that motherhood makes.

Her love for the gospel and her commitment to her church calling are something else that I admire about her. She is always willing to go the extra mile to serve and love those she comes in contact with.

Margaret is also very funny and we always have a good time together. I know that when she was younger she got teased a lot but I would not want to be sisters with anyone else.

I love you. I hope you have a great birthday and a great year!

Funeral and other things

Last week I didn't really read any blogs or write on mine so I thought I would treat you today to how my week went.



We found out last Saturday, October 18th, that Grandma Kieffer had passed away. We spent that evening looking for flights and trying to find the cheapest one we could for such short notice. We also called some family members to give them the news.



On Sunday I went to church and that evening we headed to the Atlanta airport to fly to SLC so we could begin planning Grandma's funeral. We left at 9:15pm our time and arrived in SLC at 11:15 or so their time. We didn't get to bed until, what felt like, 3 am our time. It was crazy but I was so glad to finally be there. We went to Uncle Stan's and Aunt Donna's and crashed.



On Monday we had breakfast with Uncle Stan and Aunt Donna and then headed out to Bountiful. We went to the mortuary first to proofread the obituary (good thing..Panguitch is spelled with a "g" and not a "q") and also to look at the casket. Apparently, the day before everyone thought Grandma had picked out a green casket but we ended up going with a silver one with a pink tint. It was very beautiful. We also went with Aunt Lois and Uncle Alvin to Mr. Mac's, a suit store in SLC, to get them both a new suit for the funeral. Followed up by lunch at Robintino's. Mom and Dad left to go back to South Jordan and I spent the evening visiting.



On Tuesday Aunt Lois, Uncle Alvin and I went grocery shopping before we went to pick up their daughter, my cousin, Kristi from the airport. We were all excited that she was able to come to the funeral. After picking her up we went to lunch at Grandma K's favorite Chinese restaurant and then we went to Macy's for a little funeral shopping. I had to look cute right? And Grandma would have wanted me to have a new "blouse". I had fun hanging out with my cousin and her parents. I don't get to see them that often so we had fun.

On Wednesday the viewing was scheduled from 6pm to 8pm that night. Aunt Lois was planning to have the family come up afterwards so much of the morning was spent cleaning and getting things ready. Kristi and I went to the funeral home to help my other aunt and cousin dress Grandma. I never thought it would be something I could or would want to do but it turned out to be a really neat experience and I am glad I went. Grandma looked great and I even touched her a few times. I was really pleased with myself. The viewing that night was actually a lot of fun, like Grandma was. I didn't cry like I did at Grandma Ward's viewing. It was fun to see family and we even had a few friends stop by. The Rizzuto's and the Cleverly's came as well as the VanUterits who we hadn't seen for years. That night we ate, played card games and hung out as a family. It was a good day.

On Thursday, the day of the funeral, my siblings arrived at the house and we all got ready for the funeral. I left early with Kristi and her parents so I could practice the piano before everyone else arrived. Grandma still looked good and things were going as planned. Two of Mom's brothers came as well as my Great Aunt Dot and Uncle Dean who are well into their 80's. It was nice to see the support we got. Our family alone filled up half of the chapel. The family prayer was given my another cousin, Kristi's brother Mike and this is when I really cried. I was standing at the back of the room while my siblings were near the front. I was standing by my BIL Kyle and he gave me a little squeeze so that was nice. (Thanks Kyle!) The funeral went really well with each of Grandma's kids giving a talk and the bishop of their ward as well. I cried a lot but it was good for me to do that. It was a release. Another cousin sang and she did a great job. After we got back to the church after the cemetery we had a lovely luncheon provided by the Bountiful 25th Ward Relief Society. It was great to talk to people I hadn't seen in so long and find out who was and wasn't on facebook and tell everyone to be my friend! That night we had more people up to the house and just had a great time.

On Friday we had family pictures taken by another cousin so we could have a recent picture. I got to hold my nephew, Little G, lots and lots. We went out to Gardner Village and had a good time there. That night we spent with Mom's family and again I saw cousins I hadn't seen in many years and told them to be my friends on facebook. It was a great night and very relaxing after a stressful couple of days.

On Saturday, we said good-bye to my siblings and then Kristi, me and her parents went to her brothers for dinner. It was nice to be with family and I was so tired from everything that I was glad to do nothing. Their kids are really cute and I enjoyed getting to know them. Everyone else played Settlers of Cataan and I watched. It looked too much like thinking and I just couldn't do it.

On Sunday we went to the airport, got on a plane and came home to the ATL. It was a good trip full of sad and happy moments. I laughed and cried. Most of all, it was a great time to reconnect with family and remember what this life is truly about.

Christmas Gifts

Dearest readers I need your help. My siblings and I, along with their spouses, have traded names for Christmas for the last few years. Because there are so few of us some of the spouses have to give to each other which I guess isn't so bad but it can be hard to figure out a rotation that will work out for everyone. I am in the market for any suggestions on how to go about doing a rotation in my family. There are 6 of us, 8 including my parents which we might include in the rotation this year but I haven't quite decided. So, faithful readers, please help! Thanks!

Time Machine: The Siblings 1986

Frightening isn't it?

I like my hair. It feathers so nicely. I can also see the future with those glasses.

I like my brother's half mesh/half cloth shirt.

My sisters both have mega watt smiles.

We are cute though.

Happy Anniversary

My sister Liz and her husband Kyle have been married 5 years today! Congratulations to them! I am so happy that they found each other and make each other happy. They recently got a new puppy and her name is Lucy. She is SOOO cute. I love you guys and I hope you have a fabulous day.

More Sibling Fun

Along with my previous post I was thinking about my other sibling, Margaret and the things we would do to her when she was little. Margaret was the youngest and therefore usually the butt of every joke and our favorite to torment.

I remember one Christmas in particular. She had received the Barbie tent trailer along with every accessory known to man. I think it even had a BBQ grill. Margaret set everything up and then decided to leave and go see what her friend next door got for Christmas. While she was gone there was an "earthquake" in the living room. There were Barbie parts spread from here to kingdom come. It was pretty funny. But boy was she mad when she got home. Holy cow. We got in big trouble and we still laugh about it to this day.

Margaret was very often the "bad guy" when we would play. When we lived in Georgia we had this end table that was an octagon shape. It had a large door on the front and was the perfect "jail" for our 2 year old sister. We put a blanket in there so don't think that we didn't care about her comfort. I don't think we left her in there very long either. Anytime we caught her she had to go to jail. Then I would play this creepy song on the piano.

Siblings are fun.

Sibling Memories

Today I happened to be listening to the radio when the DJ's were asking what people's favorite Halloween candy was to receive. One of the DJ's said "The Chunky" and this propelled me into thinking about my siblings and some of the things that I inflicted upon them when we were younger.

The reason "The Chunky" started these memories was because of my brother, Ken. We all loved trick or treating and we especially loved to sort our candy out once we had arrived home. All of the candy bars would be sorted into one pile by the type of candy. There were also general categories like, "I hate these but I got them anyway". Once the sorting was complete we would then beg, borrow and steal (literally) from each other to get what we liked and wanted. Nearly every year Ken would receive "The Chunky" and none of the rest of us would be lucky enough to have one in our bags. I would beg Ken to trade anything and everything for "The Chunky" but he would have none of it. He wanted "The Chunky" all to himself and most of the time I would let the issue drop. But once in a while I would allocate "The Chunky" for myself. It was yummy. Lots of chocolaty goodness that I got all to my self.

Upon reflection today it was probably pretty mean of me to steal Ken's Chunky. When he had more than one he always would share. That's my brother..he shares and I love that about him!