I can't even fathom 40 years of marriage

Way back in May...May 23 to be exact, my parents celebrated forty years of marriage.

They are the most difficult people to do anything special for...because they somehow end up giving back to their kids tenfold whatever is given to them.

So, instead of something material, we decided to put together a book of memories for our parents. Since there are four of us kids, each of us wrote up the top ten most vivid memories...either of our childhood or adult life...with one or both of our parents...siblings present or not. Knowing that some of the memories--like time spent in Sunriver--would be duplicated, it was pretty fun seeing what everyone came up with.

Our parents put us first and continue to put us first even though all of us are grown and married. We did everything as a family, always. We sat down to dinner every night growing up, and when sports interfered, a hot dinner was always waiting in the oven. When we started fighting through dinner, as siblings and teenagers do, we began watching Jeopardy while eating, and I swear that's when my love of trivia began. My parents didn't leave us much--I can remember only one occurrence when we had a babysitter. I know there were a few more, but they just chose us over most everything else. Maybe to a fault sometimes. Nonetheless, they were and are shining examples of parents.

Thanks for sticking together through it all, Dad and Mom. We are beyond blessed. Happy happy anniversary, again...just a few months late.

Um. I don't know why I can't rotate this photo. Christmas cookie decorating. If you can see my face, I'm super stoked to be eating frosting!

And I can't rotate this one either. Ugh. This was B.K. (Before Kate)...Joe and Elizabeth's birthday at Farrell's. 

Mom of many hats

My mom doesn't like wearing hats, but hypothetically speaking, the lady wears more headpieces than anyone I've ever met.

I know my siblings would agree--you just can't put into words what an over-the-top amazing mother we've been blessed with. From the second each of us was born, we've been showered with unconditional love.

We've been taught countless lessons, and I continue to learn from her on a daily basis. Let me mention just a few of my mom's words that echo in my head:
- Details and manners matter.
- Treating others as you wish to be treated is more than a mantra.
- If you want to achieve something, you have to put in the time and effort. It's not easy.
- A stiff upper lip and faith in God's plan will get you through the toughest times.
- At the end of the day, all you have is your family.
- I live a charmed life.

With her fight and fearlessness, she conquered cancer and showed all of us if you don't have your health, you really don't have much.

She kicks my toosh at the gym. I'm not exaggerating. She can lift more weight and spin her legs faster than I can. She always says she wishes she was an athlete. Well, I'd say she's worthy of that title.

She walks more than anyone--period. Whether it's to get her day started, to get to work, or to pick up something at the grocery store, she certainly puts in more miles on her shoes than her car. She's even been pulled over by the police for walking (I need to dedicate a post to these two--yes, two--incidents).

Should I even attempt to write about her cooking, baking, and entertaining dominance? It's impossible to explain how crazy this lady is in the kitchen.

Growing up, we knew Tuesday was French toast day and Thursday was pancake day--it was rare eating cold cereal and toast. There was nothing average about our mealtimes. If someone had a sporting event, dinner would be left in the oven for that kid. For us, fast food was sitting at the counter in the kitchen and watching our mom whip up a hearty meal in 15 minutes.

At school, friends would fight over our homemade lunches. We could get big money for those things!
 
Nowadays, she bakes for the teachers at her school, my dad's coworkers, neighbors, the mailman, UPS guy, and of course the front desk attendant at the gym.

I'm not doing her justice. My mom is unexplainable. She's outrageously humble. She's impossible to thank. She hates receiving gifts because she doesn't like knowing you spent money on her. She's stoic and relentlessly reliable.

I can't forget to mention how she's a mom to more than the four of us. The moment you introduce yourself as a friend of ours, you're just one of the family.

I hope and pray I can be just one ounce of the mother to my children that she's been to my siblings and me. We are the luckiest.

Happy Mother's Day!

(I can't find a better photo right this second...)

Time flies by fives

Five years ago, I didn’t want to leave the comfortable confines of my high school. I had a blast. I thought those were the best years of my life. I tried to pack everything I could into four years. I met the greatest group of girls my freshman year, and even though I transferred schools after then, we’ve never lost touch. In retrospect, transitioning to a new high school was probably what shaped my outlook on life. I promised myself I wouldn’t fall into a clique or limit myself to certain classes or activities. As a result, I played three sports, had several leadership positions and a diverse group of friends. I surrounded myself with great people, I loved going to school, and I didn’t think anything could top those years. When my senior year rolled around, I started getting scholarship offers to play basketball in college. I didn’t, however, neglect my other sports or commitments. I especially enjoyed being the editor of my school newspaper. I knew then that I wanted to study journalism in college. I figured I would find a school that was the perfect fit for the whole me, not just the athlete in me. As a result, I chose Washington State University. Before I started getting recruited, I had never really followed college sports, and I had to pull out a map to find Pullman, Wash. I was nervous and excited to leave Portland, but if you asked me then, I would have never guessed all that I would experience in the four years to come.