Maryland Storm of 2010 & Brian's Baptism

On February 4, 2010, Alan and I flew to Utah to watch our oldest grandchild be baptized. It was a wonderful event and Brian was sooooo thrilled!!! His Grandpa wasn't going to come and surprised him. He was at least a head taller than any of the other kids that were being baptized that day. His uncle Brian got to play a piano solo and we teased Brian by saying that his name was on the program to play. He said he wasn't going to play and looked quite shocked that we had him on the program. He was glad that it was a different Brian Marchant.
After the delicious post baptism luncheon, we headed to Andy's to do our online check in for our flight the next day. We were shocked to see that our flight had been cancelled. We knew a storm was coming but we were sure they would be able to clear the runway by the next day. Not so!!! Maryland has one fifth the equipment and manpower that Utah has. Plus their knowledge in snow removal is severly lacking. The earliest they could reschedule our flight was Wednesday. That was 3 days longer than planned. We had only packed enough clothes and supplies for our initial visit of 3 days. Now it was 6. At least we had family to stay with.
Dad had a scheduled business meeting in Texas and was supposed to fly out of Baltimore on Tuesday. He checked with his office to see if anyone would be able to fly out to be their. Another storm was going to hit the east coast on Tuesday afternoon. They were sure if they left in the morning, they could make it. He flew out early Tuesday. I did my on line check in for the following day's flight. Two hours later my flight had been cancelled again. The airport had closed by noon on Tuesday. My flight was rescheduled for Saturday. I checked the weather and no more storms were coming until the following Tuesday. A day later I found that a few flights had been scheduled for Friday so I called to change my flight to a day earlier. They said one reschedule was all that they allowed but would check and see if they could make an exception. Luckily they did. I arrived late Friday and was amazed by the snow. Between both storms we had about 4 feet of snow. 38 inches the first storm and 10-12 the second.
Here are a few pictures of the Historical storm!!


Anyone for a picnic!!!


The snow is almost up to the railing on our deck. My deck swing is totally covered.



Our deck stairs are completely useless.

A side view of the stairs. Almost to the railing too!!!

Can you find Alan's truck? Upper right corner.

The view into our culdesac. Can you see the Durango on the right?

The view from our window.

The back deck!!! The snow is mashed against the back door.

The truck after clearing.

The truck as Alan found it when he arrived from Texas.

Newest Grandbaby!!

Here is the Happy Family. Born May 7, 2009.
Sweet Camden Brian Marchant!
It's so sad that I won't be able to see him until July. By then he will be talking and walking if he is anything like his daddy was. :0)

Charisse's Tag

1. Where did you meet your husband?
Well.....a long long long time ago I was in college at byu. I just happened to move into an apartment with a nice girl named Clover. She just happened to be a cousin to my man. She convinced me to go to her cousins house for the 4th of July to have a cook out and go to a rodeo. Three weeks later we were engaged.
2. How long did you date before you got married?
Well from the first meeting to our wedding was 4 months and 1 day. From our first date.....probably a little less than 4 months. I'm pretty sure our first official date was a week after we met.
3. How long have you been married?
November 5, 1977-February 20, 2009. That would be 32 years, 3 months, 15 days, 13 hours and 44 minutes.
4. What does he do that surprises you?
Hmmmmm......He's absolutely amazing!!! He can fix anything, build anything, teach anything and SPILL anything.
5. What is your favorite feature of his?
His beautiful blue eyes and his hands. I love his hands. I could spot them sooooooo fast in a line up of hands.
6. What is his best quality?
Too many to specify for sure. Some that I notice alot are sense of humor, patience with babies and children (this has increased since our kids grew up), love of the gospel......
7. Does he have a nickname for you?
Mostly Dear. Sometimes I'm his 1st, 2nd or 3rd wife.
8. What is his favorite food?
Tough question. I'm going to put MILK as number 1. Then probably a good steak. He does like my homemade chicken and dumplings.
9. What is his favorite sport?
Football to watch. Back in his youth-basketball to play. Now, maybe a good game of golf.
10. When did you first kiss?
After our first official date!! He was shockingly fast!
11. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple?
Drive to new places and explore. Go to some good plays (Shakespear Festival).
12. Do you have children?
Yes. 5 fabulous kids. 4 fabulous spouses to those kids and 4 fabulous grandkids.
13. Does he have any hidden talents?
Not anymore. All his talents are exposed now. But I would say his hidden talent would be his apptitude to learn something new and do it. (Plumbing, tiling, staining, gas lines, roofing, cement work, wall texturing, accounting, teaching nursery, laying sprinkler lines, harmonica playing, piano, woodworking.................shall I go on?)
14. How old is he?
52 years, 11 months and 39 days. Exactly 2 months and 17 days YOUNGER than me.
15. What is his favorite music?
He likes a lot of country and he also really likes celtic women music. It's really very pretty and soothing to listen to.
16. What do you admire about him?
His complete honesty. He never wants anyone to think he has been dishonest in anything he does or says. And it seems like I can ask him for anything and he will do it. Of course, I never ask him to do something wrong. I think he loves me :o)
17. What's his favorite color?
BLUE!!!!!
18. Will he read this?
Someday
19. Who said "I love you" first?
Definately him!! He moved soooooo fast I didn't know what hit me.
20. Who do I tag?
Well..... Charisse already tagged all the daughters and daughter in laws so I will tag anyone else that reads this. If you are male(my sons) answer the questions about your wife.

TAG

Here are the Rules
1. Post Rules on Your Blog
2. Answer the 6 Categories
3. Let Each Person Know by Leaving Them a Comment.
I don't have a clue what number 3 means. So this is my interpretation: " Thanks for giving me this opportunity to ponder my life Heather"

8 Favorite Shows
1. Biggest Loser
2. American Idol
3. House
4. Amazing Race
5. Numbers
6. Bones
7. Lost
8. Chuck and .......any HGTV Design Shows

8 Things I did yesterday
1. 30 Minutes on the Eliptical
2. Played a new computer game from my Birthday (Hidden Expedition Everest)
3. Read my emails
4. Went to work
5. Made a list of all the 2005 Charts at work from D-G
6. Bought Sarah a Birthday present on line
7. Drank my afterwork fix of Sugar Free Chocolate Milk
8. Went with my Sweetie to dinner

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To
1. Going on a hunting trip in Pennsylvania with Dad to find some special wood.
2. A New Baby Grandchild in May.
3. A trip to Utah in May.
4. Sarah's Wedding
5. New light fixtures in my Kitchen
6. SATURDAY!!!!! No Work!
7. A Trip to NY State that hasn't been planned yet but we are talking about it.
8. Starting later next month I get to take Thursday afternoons off. Yeah!! Now I can clean.

8 Favorite Restaraunts
1. Timbermine(Yes it is still my favorite)
2. Red Robin
3. Mi Casa (little mexican food place in Ellicott City here)
4. La Favoria (little Italian Place in Ogden)
5. Outback
6. Taco Time in Brigham
7. Golden Corral
8. Chick-filet

8 Things on My Wish List
1. Not working anymore.
2. Ripping out the carpet in my upstairs and replacing it with hardwood.
3. Traveling by car to new places.
4. Seeing all my kids together in the temple for Sarah's wedding.
5. Losing Weight.
6. Reading a good book that really grabs me.
7. An extra bedroom.
8. A different house.

8 People I Tag
1. Barbie
2. Suzy
3. Patti
4. Jeff
5. Jackie
6. Scott
7. Mark
8. Last but not least, my favorite person of all ALAN.
Most of these people don't have blogs so they probably won't see this. I did send them all my blog address though.

busy, Busy, BUSY!!!!

I never thought my life could be so busy and so crazy at the same time. Working and being a homemaker is one of the hardest things to do. I'm terribly unbalanced and I'm ashamed to say that the homemaker job is the one I'm failing at. Maybe if I were younger and stronger I could do a better job. As you can see, the blog has been neglected too. It falls in the homemaking job so .....

Christmas was a blast with Heather's family here. We rarely had time to rest. The kids didn't like the site seeing as much as the adults and probably won't remember that part much at all and if they do, it will be with frustration. But hopefully the rest will bring back pleasant memories. We hope to have Andy's crew here this next year.

Can't tell who it is? Heather and Brian

One of those great site seeing trips!

Adin enjoying a fresh Dunkin' Donut!!

The medical practice I work for has gone back to a regular practice instead of a retainer practice They were very successful at collecting $2000 from patients for a years worth of healthcare.

Of course they still needed insurance to pay for drugs, hospital and specialists. They were surprised at the response. But Maryland has an insurance commission that didn't understand and wants to investigate and regulate so they pulled out. I'm glad because I need the job for at least another year and they were going to let people go. I was thrilled to receive my yearly pay increase of 50 cents an hour. ;) They told me I deserved it with all my hard work. If you didn't know. I work for 3 jewish, miserly doctors and 2 regular ones. The miserly ones are in charge. But with how much I make, I'm at a little under 5% for my raise. Not bad for an uneducated OLD lady.

My birthday was rather uneventful. Dad was at a conference in DC and had to stay for 3 days and 2 nights. It was the company's board meeting so he didn't have a way to get out of it. Sarah was great and baked me an angel food cake (my favorite). When dad came home he took me out to my favorite mexican food restaraunt and planned to celebrate the next night. He said he would get off work early so I could go get a new cell phone. (My one request for my birthday). When we got home I came upstairs to talk to Sarah and things didn't look right. I was SUPER SURPRISED to see a brand new flat screen tv for me. Wow! What a shock. It was so fun to have a surprise. Dad had actually stayed home the whole day and gone out to get it and set it up before I got home. I love it and my pretty PURPLE phone.

Now all of you better go out and by Crest and they should pay me a

huge chunk for advertising!!

I better quit before you have a heart attack from reading my long awaited for Blog.

Not So Good....

A favorite of mine! Sarah took this at the BYU Game Day!! Andy is showing his TRUE smile. A very rare picture.

I guess I'm not doing so well. But not much happens here. It seems like my whole life is about work and I hate it. By the evening we are so exhausted that we do......... just about nothing. Dad has been helping a boy in the ward with his Eagle. He decided to do cement work and word got around that dad knew how so he was nabbed. Maybe I should send Sarah with a camera so we can highlight the event. Sarah has been going with him from the beginning. Rain, sleet, ice or sun. (No snow here) The past 3 Saturdays they have been going and a couple week nights. It will be going forever. The kid decided to do sooooooo much. He didn't have a clue how hard it would be and his parents didn't either. Because of the project my cupboards have been put on hold. Dad is hoping to have them finished by Christmas.

You can see the shine and the change. This cupboard was actually hanging on the other side of the kitchen but I want dad to open the wall up so we have more openness from the kitchen to the dining/family room

Some of the finished cupboards. Dad Started here at the top.

Here you can see the old and the NEW!!! I love the cherry color and the shine

I can't believe I'm doing this!!!

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago.

1. I was living in Brigham City and thinking life was pretty easy.

2. I was in the primary presidency and going to LONG presidency meetings once a week.

3. I would be babysitting Andy as his special missionary companion and taking him to all the doctors appointments to get him fixed.

4. I was excitedly getting ready for Halloween. Which for some odd reason I loved back when all you kids were young. Now I know better.

5. I had a major crush on the cutest guy. I was lucky to be married to him. And I still have a crush on him.

Now for the 5 things I wanted to do today. This is WANTED TO DO!!

1. Work on Charisse's quilt.

2. Make a pretty pegnoir set for Christmas Jammies.

3. Knit a Christmas Stocking for Adin.

4. I want to watch Dancing with the Stars with Sarah.

5. I want to eat something fabulous.

5 Things I needed to do today.

1. Make my bed.

2. Go to work.

3. Fix dinner-4 courses.

4. Clean my desk off.

5. Clean spider webs off the front porch.

Now for the Grand Finale

5 Things I would do with a million dollars

1. Pay tithing.

2. Pay off all debts- not including my house which would take 1/2 the money.

3. Pay off all the kids schooling debts.

4. Redo all the floors in my house.

5. Sale my house and buy something all on 1 level.

Ooooops! I Forgot the 5 jobs I've had

1. Looking at negatives and photos at a photo company. Matching them up so they all went back to the customer correctly.

2. Hotel Maid- Ugh!

3. BYU Janitor at 4 am.

4. BYU Housing Office-secretary.

5- Gilbert and Sullivan CPA's, punch card operator.

Man I missed another one.

5 places that I've lived. I'll start at the earliest to later.

1. Scottsdale, Arizona-hot, Hot, HOT!!!

2. Mobile, Alabama

3. Centralia, Washington

4. Provo, Utah

5. San Jose, California-Brigham City, Ut-Lyman, WY-Columbia, MD

I think I finally did it! I have no one to tag :o( If anyone reads this that wants to tag, DO IT!!

Just let me know so I can read yours.

The pictures above were our house in Centralia, Washington.