Walking Las Cruces

Journal Entry August 1999 (Written while sitting on our front porch in New Mexico)
This morning the rain falls, it has been since about 4:00 a.m. I’ve been up since then. The quiet morning hours are a peaceful wonderful way to start the day. I should do that more often. I love my dear husband. Sometimes we are as fire and ice. Hot tempered and stubborn and too sensitive, (me more the latter). Never the less, he is the love of my life. I must try harder to keep my home beautiful. ~I miss my children when I spend the day cleaning. But alas, there is much work to do; Spiritual, physical and emotional. It is an exhausting job. We have a nice home – a nice life- a hard life, but nice none the less.

Walking Las Cruces

Nearly every night, you and I, hand in hand, would walk our Las Cruces Neighborhood. The neighborhood was set above the city and we would walk the hills surrounded by million dollar homes and watch the beautiful sun set in the beauty of the desert. The Dona Ana mountains in the background lit up in colors of purple, orange, yellow, and blue. We were often walking for 2 hours, loving the view, the cool night air, and each other too much to turn back so soon.

City of Rocks

Camping at City of Rocks was a blast. I remember our first time there. We decided to make the 2 hour drive out there with the children just to check it out. We brought a small snack lunch which consisted of sandwiches, fruit and cookies. By the time we got there we were all very hungry. I suggested that you take the children exploring, and I would set the food out for a small picnic lunch. You left and I set the food out on the picnic table. I wondered where all of you went off to and stepped away from the table to look over and around a mound of rocks. I saw you and waved, indicating the food was ready. When I returned to the table, well, I can’t explain it, but somehow in the 30 seconds or so that I had my back turned from the table, all our food disappeared. I got back to the table just in time to catch a squirrel with his hand reaching deeply inside a Tupperware container filled with our cookies. I scared him away and replaced the lid, with bite marks in tact. You and the children returned, all very hungry and excited to eat. I told the family all we had were the cookies. You had that look of confusion on your face. You know, the one you get when you just don’t understand my thinking. Then you cocked your head to the side, shrugged your shoulders and grabbed a cookie. How horrible of me to keep the secret of the thieving squirrels. I was too embarrassed to admit I had been duped by several small 4 legged creatures.

We all fell in love with City of Rocks, and would return many times to camp, hike, climb and listen for coyotes and owls and “owls” in the still of the desert night.

Cub Scouts Together

I just thought we made a great team! I loved working with you and with those boys. We would study the theme for the month and check out all the ideas in the hundred or so idea books we had. We’d get a vision of some wonderful thing to do for the boys, and then we’d work hard to make it come true. All the boys advanced well, and hey, it was just fun. Some of my favorite cub memories are:
The Bear Claw (our soap box derby car, which won over about 23 other cars)
Hunting down the Dinosaur tracks
Jousting Tournaments with plungers and rocking disks that you made.
Space Derby (You successfully made a great track)
Hiking “A” mountain
Helping the boys make treasure boxes/stools
I deeply admired your genuine love for the boys and dedication to your calling as their leader. It was a privilege for me to work with you, by your side, seemingly completely united for a good cause.

Walking the Neighborhood

Our West Jordan neighborhood was awesome, or rather YOU were awesome in our West Jordan neighborhood. It was so pleasurable to walk around the neighborhood, hand in hand almost every night. We enjoyed looking at everyone’s flower gardens and often we’d see our friends and neighbors out walking or gardening. You would happily greet them and sweetly extend a hand of friendship. It was during these walks that I was actually the quiet, shy, non-conversationalist while you, on the other hand were very engaging and happily social. It was kind of nice to take the back seat for a while.

Buying Me Roses

We both saw it: The glow around our soon-to-be home. We saw the for sale sign, parked our car and walked around the corner into the cul-de-sac. Upon first sight we both somehow knew that was to be our home, our very first home after years of living in family student housing. As we walked closer we noticed the large beautiful windows with lace curtains showing through, the soft grey and white colors of the exterior, and the inviting walkway leading up to the door. But the sweetest sight was that gentle splash of pink jumping out toward us from the rose bush at the corner of the garage. It was such a happy little rose bush, so full of pink flowers that it resembled more a bouquet. A few months later we closed on the house and that rose bush was “ours” but somehow you knew my heart. Many people express their love and devotion through flowers. A lai, bouquet, a corsage, you expressed your love and devotion through a rose bush, attached to a big and beautiful home. “I bought you roses.” You remarked with a grin. “Yes you did” I responded, fully understanding the sweet sacrifice you make for me, your wife, and for your little family.

Singing to the Children at Bed Time

You and I sang almost every night to our children. It started with Lisa then came Rebekah and Daniel and Amber and Hannah. From 20 minutes to 90 minutes we would sing them all to sleep every night. We sang mostly the songs from the Primary Children’s Songbook, but also included some of the classics such as “Rock a Bye Baby”. Of course we had to change the words so they weren’t so tragic. But one of our favorite was “Loo, Loo Loo, Little Baby”

Loo, Loo, Loo, little baby,
Close your eyes.
Loo, Loo, Loo, Little Baby
Dream of Paradise.
Mother is here with you,
Father is close by too,
Loo, Loo, Loo, little baby,
Close your eyes.

(We would often substitute the names of our children for the word “baby”)

The traditional nighttime singing slowly faded away as the children stopped going to bed all at the same time and in the same place, but occasionally as I walk by Michelle and Sarah’s room, I hear the lovely tones of your voice and peak in to see you singing “Father is here with you, Mother is close by too. . .” to our youngest little princesses.

Slumber Seranade

In the old days, I would go to bed before you. Can you even imagine that now? I would promptly announce “I’m going to bed now.” And then I would retreat to the bedroom. Then, one day,to my surprise, you said that you wish I would not be so abrupt in announcing my intentions, and instead sweetly invite you to join me as I head to bed. So, to accommodate your tender desires, I composed the following poem and would recite it to you as I gently took your hand in an attempt to invite you to join me in my slumber.

Dearest one,
I yearn to lie in yonder bed
With the one whom I have wed
Where we may rest in slumber sweet
And with the dawn, the sun to greet.

Mother's Day Tribute

Mother’s Day tribute
At our Married Student Ward in BYU Family Housing the Relief Society would spotlight a sister from the ward with a tribute written by her husband. You were asked to write a tribute for me which would be read on Mother’s Day. In spite of your very busy schedule of work and school, and your apprehension at writing anything, you took great time and effort to write a beautiful tribute to me. To this day I long to live up to your kind words.

Marshall’s Mother’s Day Tribute, written by him, May 1989

She is shy, yet has managed to bless nearly everyone in the quad in one way or another. She generously gives of her time and talents to neighbor and family. Her house is always clean and for the two years of her marriage she has provided three delicious meals a day.
Besides cooking, she enjoys the Performing Arts, softball and volleyball. She is a strong hiker and has conquered challenging summits even while pregnant. She plays the piano and guitar, has written a play and in her early teens, wrote inspired music and lyrics. As a freshman, she defeated her entire school in an impromptu speech competition. Being very meticulous and reliable in her youth she was offered up t o $11.00 an hour to clean the homes of others. Exerting little effort she graduated from high school with high honors and then attended Ricks College for two years.
Her patriarchal blessing states that there will be many men who would come to seek her hand in marriage. At the time of our engagement announcement I know of at least 4 men who had their plant failed -one with drooping jaws and an open mouth and another who threatened to fight for her hand.
She has held many positions of leadership in the church including each position in the Relief Society Presidency. She is now the mother of two children and desires to enhance her life further with 3-6 more. She has won the praise of parents and her husband and is very much loved. “Happy Mother’s Day, Laura. Thanks for making the words of the following song blessings of our home.” From Your Loving Husband, Marshall:

Love at Home
There is beauty all around, when there’s love at home;
There is joy in every sound, When there’s love at home
Peace and plenty here abide, Smiling sweet on every side,
Time doth softly, sweetly glide, When there’s love at home.