Thanks for the Memories

My paternal grandfather passed away on April 20.  I have many fond memories of my Grandpa Taylor.  He was a kind and loving man, and he could fix anything.  My Dad has shared many memories of Grandpa having exceptional physical strength.  I never saw that side of him, but he always had a big hug and a kiss for me, and never failed to tell me I was "so pretty" and had a "beautiful smile."  That last comment always made me feel good because I have always been self-conscious about my teeth through 8 years of orthodontia.  Nathan and I laughed so hard at Pixar's short film "Gerry's Game" because the old man reminded us so much of Grandpa.  We'll miss him here, but I'm so happy he is reunited with Grandma. 

Here is a slide show of my most recent pictures of Grandpa and Grandma.  I never knew my Great Grandparents, and so grabbed as many opportunities as arose to take pictures of David with my grandparents.  Daniel never got to meet them...here.

Mouse over images to see captions.

...And a video of him dancing as my cousin Nicole sings at a birthday celebration for both Grandpa and Grandma on November 22, 2003.  My favorite parts are when he does the hula (echoes of his years in Tahiti) and when he pulls on his pant legs to kick his foot in the air.  What a goof!

Obituary: Ralph R. Taylor

Published in the Deseret News on April 23, 2008

Ralph R. Taylor 1914 ~ 2008 Our sweet, patient father full of good humor and love, left the restraints of this life to meet joyfully with our Heavenly Father, wife and other family and friends who have gone on before. Ralph Randall Taylor, 94, was born January 3, 1914 and passed away April 20, 2008. He is the third child of William H. and Flora Darling Randall Taylor. He attended schools in Salt Lake City, graduating from West High School where he was a member of ROTC. Dad saw the beautiful Molly Hewitt and wanted to get to know her. With his good looks and playful smile, he charmed her into marrying him on January 29, 1936 in the Salt Lake Temple. In March, 1936, soon after they were married, he left for a three-year mission to the Tahitian Islands. He came to love the Islands and the people. While his memory waned on some things, never the Tahitian language or of his memories there. Dad was a very creative handyman. He could fix or build anything. Just name it. Dad loved a clean and kept yard and worked hard to do that and ensure the neighborhood was also swept and tidy. He was a member of the [Mormon] Tabernacle Choir for over 30 years. He was ward choir director for nearly that long. He worked for a short time on the radio doing voice characterizations for "The Children's Friend Hour." He loved to direct "roadshows" and with his love of music and dramatic theatrical flare, directed the ward to many first places. It was said of the way he led music "he could make the floorboards sing" and "he didn't lead the music, he performed it." He worked for the telephone company after his mission until he retired and received the Outstanding Craftsman Award from Gov. Scott Matheson. Dad and mom served a mission at historic Nauvoo where they made many friends and wonderful memories. He was a volunteer at Welfare Square from the time construction began on the facility until he was 92. The family wishes to acknowledge and thank his many friends there, especially Erik and Patty. After mom passed away in 2005, Dad was cared for by his loving children until January 2008 when Beehive Home of West Jordan became his home. He passed away at Jordan Valley Hospital. Dad easily endeared people to him with his wit and charm and was always grateful for friendships and kindnesses shown to him. On his behalf, a heartfelt thanks to all who helped him in anyway, large or small. You were a blessing to him. We would like to let the people of 26th Ward know, Dad loved you all. Dad is survived by brother, Eldon Taylor; sons, Dennis H. (JaNice), Tim R. (Missy Gay); daughters, Becky Jones (Lynn), Nadine Osgood (Warren); daughter-in-law, Marcia Baker, 24 grandchildren, seven step-grandchildren, 62 great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Marvin and Elma Taylor, Norman Taylor; sister, Alta and Harry Jones; sister-in-law, Hilda and Rands Wiley, Betty Taylor and brother-in-law, Fred Hewitt; his wife Molly; son, David Ralph and grandson, Michael Jones. Funeral Services will be held at 11 a.m. on Sat., April 26, 2008 at Pioneer 26th Ward, 1145 W. 500 S. Viewings will be held between 6-8 p.m. on Fri., April 25, 2008 at Redwood Memorial Mortuary, 6500 S. Redwood Road, and also one hour prior to services at the church. Interment Redwood Memorial Cemetery.

Catching up on Photos

I have a still photo of David making a snake face in the slide show, but watching him actually do it is much more fun:

Book Tag

My dear friend Leslie just tagged me with book tag. Rather fun, come to think of it. To complete this tag you must:

(1). Pick up the nearest book (at least 123 pages)
(2). Turn to page 123
(3). Find the 5th sentence
(4). Post the 5th sentence on your blog
(5). Tag 5 people

I'm sorry, the nearest book to my computer station doesn't seem like a literary feat, but it is useful:

www.superbabyfood.com

You sure you wanted the 5th sentence?

"The main meal of the Super Baby Food Diet is outlined in the next box."

I can tell I have you all sitting white-knuckled, clutching at the edges of your seats, desperately needing the next one. You'll just have to read the book!

I bought this book on recommendation from one of the pediatricians at David's clinic in Washington. She was a pretty granola sort of doctor, which isn't bad, but I wasn't much of a granola kind of mom. I felt intimidated by the methods in the book at the time and so it got comfortable on the shelf. I didn't feel like I had time to make my own baby food out of things Nathan and I didn't normally eat, and I wasn't sure how to introduce a lot of what we were eating to David (Chicken Enchiladas anyone? Lasagne?) I was gun shy and so just kept spoon-feeding him commercial baby food. Voila! I have a very picky eater when it comes to textures, and oh yeah, he's 3 1/2 and still wants us to spoon-feed Gerber veggies to him. What's wrong with this picture? (in all fairness to him, he does eat other stuff, but prefers the Gerber veggies to the real McCoy)

So, with Daniel we dusted off the book again and I've found that making my own baby food is not as scary as I once thought. A big factor in that is that I'm not feeling like I have to produce everything suggested in the book, especially stuff with wheat germ and brewer's yeast and sprouting my own beans. I started with sweet potato puree frozen in ice cubes and then several weeks later decided I was ready to try making squash. That's all I've done so far. In some ways it's rather fun. And I've also been much more adventurous in giving Daniel bits of what we're eating. As much as we love David, we want to avoid a repeat of his eating habits.

A little side note: this book is so much more than baby food. Among other things she has a whole section on child-safe cleaning methods for using all over the house, as well as other money saving tips. Also a section on what to look for when choosing produce and how to cook and store it. It's a pretty amazing resource for anyone with children under 3.

So...I tag...ummm...Jenny, Rebecca (this will give you something for your new blog), Sara, Lisa, and Melanie.

If any of my other faithful readers out there (hell-oooooo....... ECHO..... Echo...... echo.......) want to participate but don't have a blog you're welcome to add your input in the comments section.

Garage Renovation

Here are pictures of our garage renovation. I'm really excited to have this done and load and unload kids inside the garage.

Our Latest/Nash Rambler/Chompie Byte

April 8, 2008

 You know, I can barely remember March, but we had some adventures.  I came down with the flu or something like it that first week.  I felt pretty yucky, but that was actually one of my most productive weeks around the house.  "How did that happen?" I keep wondering.  I guess when you're sitting in a stupor you realize you're staring at something that really needs attention and you can't stand to look at it in that condition any more.  So it was with my miniblinds and my back yard.  The miniblinds aren't much to report besides feeling glad they're done, but if you're looking for a great way to get filthy blinds clean with minimal labor, ask!  The back yard, on the other hand, was a big deal.

 We hadn't raked it the entire time we've lived here, plus it was a mess when we moved in.  There was a 4-foot swath of long grass growing through deep pinestraw in the middle of the yard, so I wasn't sure where lawn ended and pinestraw bed began.  We decided to just clean out the whole shebang and start with a clean slate.  I started working on it during Daniel's afternoon naps one week, and with the help of my Visiting Teacher one day, we got it done in three afternoons and put 45 bags of lawn debris out on the curb for pickup.  It was a really big job, but I am so glad to have it finished!  We found a bunny in a burrow while we were raking.  That was fun for the kids to see.

 The middle two weeks of March were pretty run-of-the-mill.  David discovered bugs and dirt in the newly-exposed back yard and loved doing what boys do best.  Add some rain to make puddles and we had one happy camper on our hands.  I finally broke down and bought him some rain boots because his shoes were coming in a soggy muddy mess on a frequent basis.  He also liked to put a bucket on his head in lieu of a raincoat.  What a goof!

 For Easter I decided I wanted to visit with some family, so I packed up the boys and went to Charleston, SC to visit my brother Preston and his family for a few days.  David loved playing in their backyard with the big trampoline (netted in for safety) and the treehouse that Preston built before he left for Iraq.  David had a lot of fun playing with his cousins and especially Uncle Preston.  He asks me frequently if we're going to Preston's house again.  While I was there we visited Downtown Charleston, which is one of my favorite places to go.  I've been there so many times, but with the exception of a few unmistakable streets (Rainbow Row, the Battery), I get lost among the old homes so each trip is like seeing it for the first time all over again.  I love it!  David really enjoyed playing on the old cannons at the Battery.

Preston and his three kids: Matt (6), Kaitlyn (2), and Leanne (4) plus David (3) on a cannon at the Battery in Charleston, SC

 We came home Saturday afternoon to spend Easter with Nathan.  He had Easter baskets ready for the boys and plastic eggs hidden around the house for David to hunt out.  That was a big hit!  Even still David brings his bucket of plastic eggs to us and asks us to hide them for him.  One day he went and "hid" them all himself, to find himself, in some very creative places.

 Monday after Easter we had the very great joy of hosting Preston's family on our turf.  Preston applied to NC State for grad school and wanted to visit the campus, check out  the area, etc.  His kids were on Spring Break so they all came on up for a couple days, much to David's delight.  Then that Friday we got to host my brother Brenden for several hours after a work-related seminar in Raleigh before he headed down to Woodbadge training in Savannah, GA.  I was delighted to have two spur-of-the-moment visits from my family in one week, and David has decided that anyone named "Uncle" is really cool.

 Our next big thing to report is that we got our garage renovated this past week.  Yipee!  We have a small double garage, and when we moved in it had two single doors for entry.  The Corolla fit in fine, but the Van was a tight enough squeeze through that doorway that I didn't even want to try after my first attempt.  We hired a company to remove the center column, replace the headers with a single load-bearing beam, and install one double door.  Barring some communication and HOA issues, once we got the go-ahead they made quick work of it.  I called the contractor on Monday, they came on Wednesday and did demolition and reframed the opening, then Thursday they did exterior trim and siding replacement (in the rain, I might add), and Friday we had a new door installed.  Now all that remains is to let it all dry out enough for them to paint it.  I'm very excited and have relished parking the van in the garage over the weekend.  The Corolla got stuck outside because there are still construction materials on the other side of the garage.  J

 Daniel has amused and entertained us greatly this month.  He started crawling forward now, so we don't have many snail trails around the house anymore.  He just mops it up with his belly as he goes along.  He really moves, though, and keeps us all on our toes.  David scurries ahead of Daniel moving toys he doesn't want played with.  A lot of times now Daniel crawls over to my feet and then extends his arms and legs, balancing on his tummy, to tell me he wants to be picked up.

He loves Cheerios and detests getting his face washed after meals.  And as good-natured as he is, he's also got a string of chiding syllables he'll send our way when we take too long to do something (like get him up from his nap).  He and David are good pals.

We love you all!

The (Other) Other Nashes,

Nathan, Natalie, David, and Daniel

--
Natalie


"No matter what you've done for yourself or for humanity, if you can't look back on having given love and attention to your own family, what have you really accomplished?"
- Elbert Hubbard

Speaking of April Fools

I just read an article online entitled "Top 10 April Fools' Pranks for Nerds." My absolute favorite is the Newton Virus. Watch it work here:

April Fools

It's been a very long time since I pulled an April Fool's prank. The only successful one to my recollection was when I told my fourth grade teacher she'd dribbled ice cream on her shirt at lunch and then did the "tweaked nose gag" when she looked down.

I have been slack in introducing David to the big holidays. I forgot about Valentines, St Patrick's Day, and Easter until they were right upon us. I forgot those, why would I remember April Fools Day? And yet, by happenstance, David pulled a fantastic prank on us.

I got out of bed late this morning and scurried to grab a quick shower before Nathan left for work, but the water was taking forever to warm up. I mean FOREVER. I was totally baffled and mentioned it to Nathan. He twiddled with the fixtures a bit and was just as baffled, especially after trying the bathroom sink and also getting cold water when it was turned all the way to hot. What could be wrong, we wondered? We had hot water last night.... I was about to suck it in and take a cold shower, and then I remembered... David was playing in the garage yesterday and must have tampered with the thermostat on the hot water heater. A trip down there confirmed my suspicions. The temp was turned way lower than "vacation." I could have run that shower for hours and it would never have gotten any hotter. I didn't have time to wait an hour for the water to heat up again, so I just decided to skip the shower.

David 1: Mom 0. Thanks, Son.