Random Memories...(misty water colored)...

With the holidays here I have been thinking about some of the people in my life and all the funny memories, random facts or objects that remind me of them. Things that make me smile or laugh or that have literally shaped my life. For example...when I talk about shaping my life...my Aunt Wendy's favorite cereal when I was a kid was Honeycombs. At least that was my impression. I would watch her, with her super awesome feathered eighties hair and impeccable eye make-up stroll in my grandma's kitchen and take a tall drinking glass, fill it with Honeycombs and be on her way. On that same note, my Aunt Diana's favorite cereal was Golden Grahams. Those are two cereals...that I usually always have in my pantry and that Matt knows he can't touch. (See what I mean about life changing.)

I thought I would list some of the memories that popped in my head while I was thinking about this. If I happen to spill a tremendous personal secret, I am very sorry, it should make you feel better that this is my dumb blog and you are the only one who reads it. I promise. (Also...if they aren't how you remember them...then it's quite possible that you are right. However...I will likely deny that. FYI)

My Uncle Jonathan used to tickle me until I screamed and he was terrible at promising treats for a foot rub. I think he still owes me about 35 ice cream cones. I eventually wised up! I am almost POSITIVE that he still probably goes around trying to bribe people to rub his feet.

My cousin Brian traded his Michael Jordan poster for a BB gun. When he was showing me his cool trade he accidentally shot me in the fore head at point blank range in the forehead. He freaked and I promised not to tell his dad. I didn't...because I was cool like that. (I hope he doesn't get in trouble now.)

Another memory I have of my Aunt Wendy is going into her room and sprawling out on the floor and looking at her stacks of Vogue magazines. Ripping open the perfume samples and rubbing them all over my wrists. She gave me tracing paper and I used to trace the clothing in the magazines. Even now I will sketch clothing. She also had a pair of pearl earrings that I used to admire and she would tell me, "when you get your ears pierced you can borrow them". I still think of her when I wear pearl earrings.

My mother is a wonderful cook but makes the WORST boxed mac & cheese EVER. She never measured the butter or milk, so it was more like, mac & cheese soup when we were growing up. SOOO...whenever we went to my Aunt Barb's and she made the Mac & Cheese it was like HEAVEN. She would carefully measure out the ingredients. She would even heat the milk up before she added it. (which I now do when I make it) She also used to make the spiral mac & cheese as an added bonus. We would eat it up in her Tupperware bowls. (Which I think she still has) Oh how sad I was when I thought about her mac & cheese when I was eating mom's soupy version. Sorry mom...but you know it's true.

I know that my Grandma Russell's love of classical music has been passed on to almost everyone in our family. The way she used to listen to it though is what I love though. She had a music room in her old house in Provo, and she would lay on her couch, turn up the stereo loud, close her eyes and listen. I would walk in on her many times and see her laying with her eyes closed, her feet moving to the beat and her hands leading the music in the same rhythm. She has such a passion for it! One of my favorite things to still do today is go into her bedroom at night and lay on bed with her and let her tell me all about the music piece playing. Inevitably she will prepare me to listen for the "birds" that the flutes would be portraying or about "the march of soldiers" coming. She knows her music so well, that when a beautiful piece would come on the radio and my Dad didn't know the name of it, he would call my grandmother, let her listen and she would know without missing a beat the name of it.

Just the other day my sister Katie and I were laughing as we looked at the turkey carcass on Thanksgiving. We both talked about how my Grandfather would take leftovers, pick everything off of the bird including the parts people weren't intended to eat except on bad reality tv shows, and then throw it all in a pot. We came home from school one day to him at the stove with a pot of parts and some rice all mixed together. He scooped it up and put it in a bowl for us and I still laugh imagining our faces.

I will stop there for now, simply because I could really go on and on. I just love how such seemingly insignificant things can actually impact someone for the rest of their life. I really think that my step-kids are very grateful for my Aunt Barb and don't even know it when they eat her instruction following Mac & Cheese. I am going to finish eating my bowl of Honeycombs now.



Those are my Uncle Jonathan's feet, I am sure he still owes them ice cream for that.


We are take our holiday games very seriously!(ahem..Katie)


Dr. Pepper is another life changing impact from my family!! I do believe that is the first time my cousin Jack tried it! Even at my wedding people were looking for their fix!


I wasn't kidding about my Aunt Wendy and her perfect eye makeup and awesome hair. I'm sure this was taken right after she had some Honeycombs and Diana had some Golden Grahams. It was Christmas morning and that would have for sure been their breakfasts of choice.