Reuniting Family

In August I had a very special experience.  I was reunited with my sister, Jo Ann  twice, and once with two of her children, and their children.

On my First Visit, JoAnn and her husband, Clarke Sharar drove down to Ontario, CA to meet for a late lunch.  It was really great seeing her again.  I was shocked by here spiked hair style, since she always has such curly hair, and Clarke was very friendly and outgoing.  I promised that I would return and bring Linda.

JoAnn and I                                                               JoAnn and Clarke Sharar

Only about three weeks later, Linda and I were able to travel to Santa Barbara again for some training.  Linda and I drove to Palm Desert and stayed two nights and spent one entire day with JoAnn and her family.  We had lunch with two of her daughters Tanya and Christina and their children, Nicholas and Mitchell (Tanya's) and  Sydney and Samantha (Christina's).

      

JoAnn, Christina,Samantha, Sydney, Linda Dennis Tanya      Tanya with Mitchell,(Nicholas was sleeping),Christina with Samantha and Sydney

I was overwhelmed by their openness and acceptance of an Uncle and Great Uncle they had met only once or less.  I felt totally guilty for being so self involved for  years.  They seemed  anxious to know family members.  I realized that there was a real hole in my life, and that we had left a hole in their life also.  For all of these years, they had a knowledge that they had family members out there, but had a large gap.  Visiting with them, made me realize that I missed years of loving these beautiful Nieces and Great Nieces and Nephews.  That my children had missed out on knowing and loving their wonderful cousins.  Likewise, Tanya and Christine had missed out as well. 

I will not make this mistake again.  I am very grateful for the opportunity to meet them once, and intend on getting to know them better.  I am starting by sharing this blog and those of our family (below) with JoAnn who can share it with her daughters.  This will give them an opportunity to get a glimpse in to the lives of their extended family.  I will a couple are open to invited members only, so I will ask them to invite JoAnn and as I get e-mail addresses Sonya, Tanya and Christina. 

I love my immediate family that has been extended with sons and daughters in law and grandchildren.  I also love my sister an her children and grandchildren that I am just beginning to know.  I am sorry I cheated us out of all of this time.

My Family and their Blogs

 

My oldest daughter - Emily Mcammon and her husband Shane - Adana Turkey

http://mccammonblog.blogspot.com/

  

My second daughter - Kelly Babcock and her husband Mike

http://thebabcockchronicals.blogspot.com/

 

My oldest son - Scott Barrett and his wife Jentry - Lincoln, Nebraska

http://cumulativerecord.blogspot.com/

 

My third daughter - Ellen Wheat and her husband Kevin

http://mini-wheats.blogspot.com/

 

My youngest - David Barrett - Nicaragua - It is hard to get a picture of him without him pulling a face.

Happy Fathers Day

Yesterday was Fathers day, but today I received the cards in the mail.  Of course Linda gave me her cards on Fathers Day, and I did get calls from all of my children that were able (David of course does not get to call on Fathers day, only on MOTHERS day).  I thought I would share the cards with everyone. 

Mom gave me two cards:

• One plays "Just the Two of Us" song over and over, like she has to remind me that we are empty nesters and no one lives near by.  We were sooo lonely we went for a 4 hour drive with "Just the Two of Us" - Mom was really tolerant in riding on mountain roads that shook her arm and shoulder.
• In the other card she tells me that if she hadn't married me she could have found someone else to drive nuts, but that she is nuts about me.

 

Kevin and Ellen take the Crude Award.  Of course it fits right in with our family humor.

 

 

Kelly and Mike sent the Mid-life Crisis card.  However, my mid life crisis was 10 years ago.  I am now in declining life panic mode. 

 

Madison, Carter and Brooke sent the Gramp Award card.  I really like how Brooke made me look nice and thin and with lots of hair. That is so nice!

All I can say is Linda, Emily, Kelly, Scott, Ellen, and David make me look like a great Dad. Keep it up!  I know that you were all great spirits and it was a blessing to receive all of you in my family. 

My Tag Response

Liam here are the answers to your questions

4 Places I go over and over:
1. My office upstairs in our home
2. Home Depot
3. Church
4. The Airport

4 who email me:
1. Over 100 from many people at work a day.
2. Elder David Barrett
3. Linda
4. A lot of weirdos on the Internet who send SPAM

4 Of my favorite foods:
1. Chocolate chip mint ice cream
2. RASBERRIES AND BLACK BERRIES
3. Stone crab claws in Florida
4. Tacos al Pastor in Mexico

4 Places I would rather be right now:
1. On a clear mountain stream fly fishing
2. In Turkey with the McCammons and my grand children that I miss soooooo much!
3. Anywhere with my children and/or grand children (Turkey, San Antonio, Logan/Lincoln, Rexburg, Nicaragua?
4. Riding my bicycle on a quiet road either going downhill or with a wind to my back

4 Movies I watch over and over again:
1. Back to the Future
2. Meet the Parents
3. Harry Potter 4
4. The Incredibles

4 People I am tagging:
1. Kevin Wheat
2. Ellen Wheat
3. Emily McCammon
4. Jentry Barrett

We believe the Bible to be correct as far as it is translated correctly

The Pope dies and, naturally, goes to heaven where he's met by a reception committee of angels. After a whirlwind tour, The Pope is told that he can enjoy any of the myriad recreations available.

He decides that he wants to read all of the ancient original text of the Holy Scriptures, so he spends the next eon or so learning the languages. After becoming a linguistic master, he sits down in the library and begins to pour over every version of the Bible, working back from the most recent "Easy Reading" to the original handwritten script.

The angel librarian hears a loud scream, and goes running toward its source only to find the Pope huddled in a chair, shaking and crying.

"The R! They left out the R!"

"What do you mean?" the angel librarian asks.

After collecting his wits, the Pope sobs again, "The word was supposed to be CELEBRATE!"

Wonderful Kids and Kids-in-Law

I have not written on this blog for a while, because life has been too busy. My topic today is one of immense gratitude, coming from a deep reflection. Reflection on those things that are really most important.

While it did not really seem like Christmas, it was still a good Holiday. It was great to have grand kids here from San Antonio, and see Kelly and Mike. It was great that Kevin, Ellen's (now) Fiance came to visit as well. Of course it is always nice to see my children.

Life and families are really an amazing journey. Some of us, who are lucky, go from a care free childhood straight to being responsible adults and likely parents in what seems like the blink of an eye. I say lucky, because I know there are many who had to carry much more responsibility than I, while they were still children. Now as a parent of older children, and who is about to have one more get married and another leave on a mission, it is not I who is becoming responsible, but those most choice spirits in whom Linda and I have invested all of our energy and resources.

Several years ago, long before my children were old enough to worry about such things, Linda and I went to a movie with the Berkies. The movie, "Father of the Bride" was very funny, but as I looked over at Doug, he was really welled up in tears, as his oldest daughter was almost approaching marrying age. Later, when our oldest daughter, Emily, was married, I discovered that is was not so sad. It really wasn't so much loosing a child, as much as it was gaining one more member of the family, and I felt excitement for Emily growing up.

I guess one could say that you never know what type of family member you are adding, but I am very happy with the choices my children have made. Shane is one of the most entertaining and enjoyable people to associate with that I know. He has blessed the life of my daughter Emily, and (when we see him) we love the time together. It also doesn't hurt that he Fathered three beautiful grand children. The only bad thing I can say about Shane, is shame on you for taking all of our children so far away. But we love you. One of the most exciting days of my life, as a fisherman and father/father in-law, was the day in Pagosa Springs that I coached him into catching a 5 lb brown trout.

When Kelly got married, she also picked well. Mike is a very focused and hard working. Again, it was great to see Kelly grow up, and Mike has also been like one more son in the family. He has been a great hunting and fishing buddy, and what an exciting day when he shot an elk on his first 1 hr of hunting. Mike and Kelly have really blossomed as LDS parents, and I love the three grandchildren they have blessed our lives with.

I always wondered what type of person Scott would marry. He was always, and still is, such a fee spirit. The day that I first met Jentry, I fell in love. What a beauty. She is fun loving, and has a very infectious laugh. On top of all of that, she is talented and seems to keep Scott to an acceptable level of adulthood, but it is obvious that they find each other fulfilling and what more can I ask. I still enjoy the pictures I have of Jentry dressed in waiders standing in the middle of the Blue River trying to catch fish that were not biting. To Scott and Jentry: Babies are not evil. By the way, we almost changed your phone alarm to delay a couple of days.

Now, Ellen is getting ready to bet married. My baby girl. Am I sad? The truth is I am not. From experience, I look forward to another son. He has shown that he is a good sport. At Thanksgiving he endured my grueling interview. At Christmas, he endured a lot of ribbing and the threat of a physical exam by Mike. He has played along with everyone, and has shown by several actions that he cares for Ellen. He plays games, jokes around, and fits in with the rest of the family.

I love my children and I love the choices they have made, especially their choices of Spouses. In my eyes, Kids-in-Law are great. Parents-in-Law, however, as their reputation portrays can be a little iffy. Now that I am a Father-in-Law, I must also be a little iffy. I SINCERELY WANT TO APOLOGIZE FOR ANY OF THE BAD TRAITS THAT HAVE BEEN REVEALED.

I LOVE ALL OF MY CHILDREN, WHETHER BY BLOOD OR BY LAW, AND HOPE YOU WILL IGNORE INCIDENTS OF TEMPORARY INSANITY.