Memorial day plans

After lots of discussion we came to this decision for memorial day. For anyone who can make it we will meet at Moses Lake cemetary first this year 9:00 am. then we will travel to Warden cemetary meeting at 11:00. HOpefuly you will all be there for that one. Then we will go to the grade school playground where there is an area with tables and we will bbq. Please bring your own meat to BBQ, and salads or side dishes. Lyn and Sharon are bringing a cake for Emma & Haley. We will have ice water. Bring lawn chairs, base ball mitts and if someone has a basketball there are basketball hoops there also. We will have access to the bathrooms there. If anyone has flowers please bring some, we are having trouble finding any this year. Any questions please call your parents or me. See ya all tomorrow!

Memorial Day Question?

I would like to toss this question out to everyone? How would you feel about having our Memorial Day picnic somewhere in Moses Lake instead of coming back to Warden? If you would like to - does anyone have a suggestion of where? There is the old West Lake State Park, McCosh park, Cascade valley park. It would be nice to go somewhere we could still have the softball game. Maybe we could have it at Grape Drive church "legacy park". I don't know if they have restrooms there though. Well I would just like to work it out so more could and would come to the Warden Cemetary and be there for our family picture. If you can't answer on the blog then text me or call me or e mail me. I need to know so I can let everyone know. Thanks.

Memorial Day

While other people are packing their campers and cars for a 3 day vacation our family celebrates Memorial Day in the old traditional way. Why do we spend every Memorial Day doing exactly the same thing we have Always done Every year since I can remember, on Memorial Day my mother has packed her trunk with jars and cans covered with tin foil and buckets of water. Also in her trunk were flowers, not boughten flowers, but flowers she had grown mixed with flowers generously donated by the neighbors. Then off to the cemetary we would go to put flowers on the graves of our family members who have passed away. What started off as an hour at the Moses Lake cemetary has turned into an almost all day event including Warden's Cemetary. Then finishing off with a family BBQ. There is something I haven't quite figured out yet. After all the years of doing the same thing - when Memorial Day arrives - everyone is still asking "What are the plans for Memorial Day?" None of us have very many flowers growing in our yards to glean from, and the day is still cold and windy. So I guess - even though it is traditional - we can always plan on those things. I'm just going to go out on a limb here and say: We'll start at the Warden Cemetary at 9:30 am. Everyone bring all the flowers you can gather!! (For those of you who haven't made it to the Warden Cemetary you really miss something special. We gather around Dad's grave and say a few things and then Rick always offers a family prayer. We also take a family picture. Its very special and you are missing out by not coming.) Then we move on to Moses Lake where we play the "Find the Gleed Family Graves" game. So by this time its about noon and we all head back to the Warden Park for a BBQ.(Bring meat you want to BBQ and salads & desserts) (Not sure if this is going to change but I will post it if it does) We finish off the day with a New tradition. A family game of softball. Some play and some watch. If you would like to spend a traditional Memorial Day with the Cox family please come this Monday. P.S. Dress Warm!

Growing & Growing & Growing.

I just can't hardly keep up anymore! In one more week it will be June and OMGosh where did May go! Am I the only one that thinks time is flying by. When my kids were little time just dragged by. Maybe because everyday was the same as the day before. Up all night with kids, breakfast, messes, cleaning, lunch, messes, cleaning, dinner, messes, cleaning, etc. Get my drift. So time was slower, but now that we're older and we want time to go slower because its not so hard I feel like I'm in a whirl wind. Our family has been blessed this month with a new grandson, Ethan Edward Olson. Only 6 lbs. 8 oz. About the same size Michael was when he was born of course he had a twin sister to share the space with but she only weighed 4 lbs. 8 ozs so he must have gotten all the nourishment first. We are so happy for Michael and Rachael (especially Rachael) that they finally have their new baby here. Another suprise was seeing Ashley come in and have her new baby the next day. Castin Cache Iverson. 8 lbs. He looked so much bigger than Ethan. Can you just imagine their last day in heaven with Grandpa Cox before they came here. What advice did he give them. How excited they must have been knowing they would be cousins on earth and live in the same town and everything. Makes you think a little, huh? Well Ethan and Castin bring the total number of Richard and Bonnie Cox's family to 112. All because 2 people fell in love. And theres 2 more on the way that I know of, Heather & Vanessa. Watch out world, the Cox's are growing, and growing and growning!

The Day After Mother's Day

I have to say that this has been one of my favorite Mother's Days of all times. Did Ed get me the wonderful Mother's Day gift that I have always dreamed of? No. Did I get breakfast in bed? No. Did I get to kick back and relax all day? Heck No! In fact my stress level was probably in the danger zone as far as stress levels go. But after having to speak in Sacrement meeting I think the rest of the day was a piece of cake. The highlite of my day was sitting on the stand and watching each one of my kids and their families come into the chapel and Ed trying to find places for all of them to sit. I know it was a sacrifice for some of them to come and I love them for it. (See kids, it really doesn't take much to touch a Mother's heart.) If thats all they would have done it would have been the best gift ever. Our day together was icing on the cake. Ed really did try to do most of the cooking although he let the boys take over with the BBQ. I did find the stickers still on the apples he cut up in the fruit salad before we served it but I know they were washed. He tried hard, bless his heart. (He knows fathers day is coming) The kids gave me some really nice gifts but I want them to know the greatest gifts they have given us is the grandkids. When they come running with their arms out to give hugs, thats the best feeling ever. Today I am exhausted but it is a good exhausted feeling. Its interesting that the older you get - its the little things that make you happy.

Mother's Day

Another Mother's Day has finally come when we get to sit in our easy chair and relax for the day while sipping ice cold lemonade and our husband and children wait on us hand and foot . . . ( record scratching sound) What? That doesn't happen at your house?! Mine either. We can dream can't we. I guess our fulfillment comes from knowing that we had children, we didn't lose any of them, none of them have been injured too bad by our mothering technics. Yes Brian still has an enlarged nuckle from a jammed finger in 7th grade because we thought it would heal itself. And there are a few scars that might have healed better if we had taken our kids to the ER at the time of the accident but that was before insurance and even though we did make plenty of trips to the ER anyway, I still think Bag Balm and liquid Lysol are miracle drugs. Externally of course! Kids now days will never know the thrill of being thrown against the dash or back seat of a car when Mother slams on the brakes. They will not know the joy of riding in the back window looking up at the clouds as Mother whizs along on dirt roads. Or the excitement of hanging their heads out of the window going 50 miles an hour. I still remember riding home from church on mom's lap driving the car, she ran the gas & brakes of course. I am sorry but if I had to choose between riding loose in a car or being strapped down like a crimnal waiting for lethal injection - I choose riding loose. Of course there were 6 kids and mom and dad in a sedan. No way you could fit kids car seats in those cars. Seat buckles did not exist. If you rode in the front the only restraint was mother's arm coming across to block you from hitting the dash as she slammed on the break. I know car seats and seat buckles save lives and its the law, but life used to be so much more fun without them. I would like to take this opportunity to say Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful mom and all the moms in our family. It isn't an easy job, But as we watch our kids grow & become good decent adults, we wipe our brow and say WHEW!! So Far So Good! What an awesome responsiblity we have for at least 18 years. Sculpting, modeling and shaping babies to be adults. With the most important tool, "Lots of Love!"