A New Generation

Isn't Maddalena Del Monte a beautiful name?  I love it!!  She is my great great grandmother!! I just found her today when I discovered my great grandmother Giacinta Laurora's death record.  I also learned Maddalena's husband name, Saverio Morlani.  Saverio is the Italian version of Xavier. 

It is amazing how much information you can learn on one record like this!!  For this one record, I learn that my great grandmother lived to the ripe old age of 80 years old. Now I know the approximate year she was born, 1823.  I learned her parents names and that they lived in Terracina, and that Giacinta was born in Terracina.  I also learned that Saverio was a contadino (a farmer) and the ladies were woman of the house or "donna di casa".  I love my peasant Italian heritage!  I wrote more about that here.   It is always wonderful to find a whole new generation!  I am so very excited!  Now I just want to learn more!

  

Our Christmas in Pictures

In one weeks time we celebrated Christmas, two birthdays and a baptism. They say a picture speaks a thousand words so here is a book!!

Aiden the Birthday boy!

Mr. Monkey Cake

Let's Sing

Andrew with his Daddy right before his baptism

Andrew and his monkey comforter.

 

 Rachel and Joey

Amy, John and One Year Old Aiden

Brad, Kyle and Katie

Katie with embroidery from her Grandma Virginia

Rachel with embroidery from her Grandma Virginia

High tech paper shredder!!  The real one was at home!

 

Master Jedi Evan!

Homemade Aprons

Aiden all cuddled up in his monkey blankie!

More aprons!

A family of aprons, there was even one for Leah's dolly!!

 Spencer chillin' with Grandpa

There is nothing like reading books together

Leah cruising with Evan.

Happy 31st Birthday, John!!

Sledding Central Coast style!!  No snow, no problem!

How do you empty a birdbath??  You get Kyle!!  Leah is not too sure what had gotten into Kyle.

Cousin hugs!

April, Matteo, Thomas and Corbin we love you bunches and dearly missed you! 

Unconditional Love

"Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children."  

Those words from:

The Family: A Proclamation to the World 

typify my husband.  He has a great capacity for unconditional love.  When I was diagnosed with breast cancer over fourteen years ago my wonderful husband continue to love and cherish me. He accepted the change to my body, and thus that helped me to accept that change for myself.  That is a very difficult thing for a woman.

Mornings at our house come early.  Mike has to be to work at 6 am.  Our alarm clock rings at 4:30 AM.  We both get up.  Mike showers and I fix  breakfast and put together his lunch. After breakfast together he is off, and I have quiet time to myself.  People have asked me why I get up so early with him. They say, "he's a big boy, he can take care of himself".  I know he can.  But Mike works very hard long hours for our family at a very stressful job.  My little act of service for him is nothing compared to what he has given to our me and our family. 

These are examples of how we love and care for each other as husband and wife.  Showing forth that type of love brings much happiness into our family.  And that's the way it's suppose to be, just like Heavenly Father planned!!

Grandparenting together has been a delight.  I'm holding Aiden, and Mike has Kyle.

Family

It's September and I'm joining a celebration on FAMILY.  That is because this month marks 15 years since the unveiling of The Family: A Proclamation to the World . This beautiful Proclamation explains the purpose of family and how we can achieve happiness in families.

Like many others I have lived in two different families.  The one I grew up in and the one my husband and I lovingly created and raised together.  What a contrast!  One family striving to live the teachings of Jesus Christ the other just struggling along with life.  While the family my husband and I have raised  is by no means perfect, we have enjoyed much more happiness and stability than was found in the family I grew up in.

There was a major component missing for the most part in the family I grew up in.  It was from this statement from the Proclamation:

"Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities."

Just think of all the problems in the world that would be solved if only families would live those principles.  I hope you will join me in celebrating families this month. God designed families and we need to keep them strong!

Please join in the celebration by clicking one of the "Celebrate Family" links on the sidebar. 

Fabulous Friday's Forever Family Featuring...

My wonderful husband and sweetheart, Mike!! What I ever did to become so fortunate to find such a wonderful man in my life, I will never know!! Since it's Valentines month I decided I wanted to feature him today!! It will be part of his 14 days of Valentines surprise!!

Mike was the third son born to Gayle and Viola. A severe case of eczema as a youngster almost cost him his life when it became infected. Fortunately, he survived after many prayers from his mom.

We actually attended the same high school and were in the same Senior Literature class. He was however one of those brainy kids, and me....well, I was not!! We never even talked to each other in high school, but met at our all night graduation party at Disneyland. Mike graduated in the top ten of our class. At the time he was tired of school, and tired of living in the smoggy Los Angeles area. He packed up his bags and got a new set of problems by joining the Navy for six years.

We wrote lots of letters while he was in the service. We still have boxes filled with letters. I told my kids they can't read them until we have passed on. I mean it, you guys!! Anyway, we fell in love writing letters and we would date when he come home on leave. We got married three years into his Navy stint!! This year will be our 35th wedding anniversary.

Mike received nuclear power training in the Navy. He has a great job today because of that training even though he never went to college. One day when Mike was serving on the nuclear power submarine the USS Halibut. I came home from my job and was shocked to find Mike home with both hands bandaged. There was accident on the boat that created a fireball, a man caught fire and Mike helped to put out the fire with his own bare hands. He saved his life!! He received a special commendation. I was married to a true hero!!

After Mike's first experience out to sea I was surprised when he come home and said he was ready to start a family!! One thing he had noticed was the men who had families were the happiest! I could not have asked for a better father for our children.


Here are some of the qualities I appreciate in my husband. He has a great sense of humor, (but please don't encourage him). When the kids were little he would make up wonderful stories to tell them. We called them "Daddy Long Stories", they would go and on and on and sometimes put me and the kids to sleep!! He is honest and faithful. He has a great capacity for unconditional love. When I was going through breast cancer he was totally wonderful! I can't imagine myself married to anyone else. I love you, Mike!!

Fabulous Friday's Forever Family Featuring...

My grandmother, Mary Rose! "Rose" was a Christmas baby, born on Christmas Day in 1874 in Lowell Massachusetts. She died before I was born in 1941. Rose was a remarkable women who know much heartache but stayed devout to her Catholic faith. Her father died when she was only eleven years only. She married my grandfather John Thomas and they had eleven children. Rose buried five of her children before they reached adulthood. Can you imagine? I can't. Three of them were infants when they died. One son John Francis died as an eight year old. He had been cranking one of the old fashioned cars and the crane hit him in the abdomen. Mary Gladys died from tuberculosis at the age of 18. Her babies died from things that would be treatable today, prematurity, seizures, meningitis. I have never met my Grandma. However her strength helps me to be strong in my trials. She has been sealed in the Temple, to her family that has passed on. (Click on the links to learn what LDS people believe about forever families.) I wonder... did she believe that her family would go on forever. Maybe that is what gave her strength. When I meet her I will ask! I firmly believe that I am who I am today because of the my ancestors. I am eternally grateful for the legacy I have been given. I look forward to my reunion with my Grandma Rose, I will hug her and thank her for the strength she has given me!