Time Flies

“Time flies when you’re having fun” was something my parents often said, and I said it to my children too; usually in irony when the “fun” was really a hectic schedule or something not so fun that needed to be done.   This time I can honestly say that time does fly when we’re having fun.  The last few months, along with the next few to come, have been filled with more family opportunities than will most likely happen for a while.  After returning back from Arizona and the birth of our 10^th grandchild, Garrett Kauffman, David & Jessica’s son, we were blessed to have Taylor bring his fiancé, Kate Garlick, to New York for a visit.  It was wonderful to get to know her better.  We feel so blessed that he has found someone grounded in the gospel as well as an all around intelligent and enjoyable person.  Taylor often told me on the phone that he loved to make Kate happy and I can see why.  We too enjoyed seeing her beautiful smile and hearing her laugh.  We are looking forward to their upcoming marriage on June 25th.

Not long after Taylor and Kate left us Lindsey and Adam along with Alina and Anna came for a visit.  This was the first time one of our toddler grandchildren has been here and it was a true test to see if we had what we needed to keep her entertained and happy.  (I’ve decided that we may need to get a few more toys before we have any other preschoolers come our way.)  So it was a good thing we were not in the apartment too much anyway.  My favorite times were at the Met’s game, the carrousel ride, the subway rides, Central Park, the ferry ride, the zoo . . . . Ok, I loved it ALL.  I found it rather enjoyable when I volunteered to take Anna while Lindsey, Adam and Alina rented bikes and rode around Central Park.  It was a beautiful day, and I decided I would rather carry Anna in the Bjorn and push Adam’s backpack in the stroller.  When a 55-year-old woman is carrying a baby in a Bjorn in Central Park, she gets some very interesting looks from people.  First, people would usually look at how cute Anna is and then their eyes would drift up to my face and this quizzical look of, “Could she really be the mother or is she the nanny?” would come across their face.  Central Park is a great place to people watch and I felt like I contributed to the entertainment a little. 

Arizona Vacation

I know the pictures do not really capture, nor can words adequately describe, the enjoyment I had on my latest trip my to the “Never, Never Land” of grandchildren.  This time I was in Arizona with Addilyn (4), Kate (3), and Garrett (3 wks.); David and Jessica’s delightful children.  With Jessica having recently delivered our tenth grandchild, I went under the guise of helping out.  But I was really filling my reservoir full of grandma loves and memories to last me as long as possible while I am back here in New York without family.  It is working so far.  I have been home here in New York for a week now, and I still feel alive with the memories of my trip and the love of my children and grandchildren. 

You’ll see in one of the pictures that Kate Kauffman and Alina Bangerter are hugging each other. With Jessica’s generous invitation to come for a visit, Lindsey and Adam drove from Albuquerque on Friday night, April 1^st, just to spend a few hours with us for general conference weekend before traveling back to Albuquerque on Sunday. It was a joyful bonus for me to see and visit with them too and to watch the little girls playing with each other. 

May I just say that I love the magic  “Pixie Dust” of the airlines that makes it possible for me to travel great distances so I can play my grandma role to the fullest extent.

"It's a Marshmallow World"

One of my enjoyable memories as a child is standing around the piano singing with family members as my father played songs from the 40’s and 50’s. I especially enjoyed it when my mother would join us and sing in her clear soprano voice. Although my Dad’s hands were large and calloused from working long hard hours they seemed magical to me as they danced across the ivory and ebony keys to produce beautiful music.  Some of my favorite songs were, “How Much Is That Doggie In the Window.” “Sparrow in the Treetop,” “There I Go,” “Perfidia”, and “Jambalaya.”

I thought of my Dad this past Thursday morning when I awoke to see a world blanketed in snow.  I found myself humming, “It’s a marshmallow world in the winter, when the snow comes to cover the ground.  It’s the time for play, it’s a whipped cream day, I wait for the whole year round! .  .  .”  It was a nice memory as I looked out at the snowy landscape welcoming Stan and I so thoroughly to a New York winter.

This January has officially been claimed as the snowiest January on NYC record.  Gratefully, we had purchased a snow shovel and had it in the trunk of our car for such a day as I was looking at. As you can see from the pictures, once Stan was able to get the trunk open, he was used the shovel to dig out our car from the street.  (It took him over an hour to dig out.) He was grateful for the offered help of a “snowplow”  (alias - garbage truck) driver.  Although this help was not quite the same as our wonderful neighbors back in Utah, it still speaks of the kindness of many individuals here in this city.  Now with the forecast of more snow this week it seems that our “marshmallow world” will be here for a while longer.  (This last storm was great snow sculpture snow followed by mild sunny days. I f I had a few children or grandchildren to help me, we would have found someplace to build a snow sculpture . . . maybe a giant piano with a marshmallow on it.)

My Trip to "Never, Never Land"

2010 was a year of great change and consequently growth for us.  Gratefully, it was topped off with the wonderful gift of a new grandchild.  Anna JaLayne Bangerter arrived on Friday, December 10th in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  I arrived in Albuquerque  on Thursday evening of the previous week.  Anna’s arrival time allowed me a whole week to be able to play with two-year-old, Aliná,  Not only was it great to have so much one-on-one time with Aliná, I also learned something about myself.   I missed the simple play of years gone by, and I saw the creative play of a child from the eyes of a grandmother in a way I had never seen it before.

As a mother, I did not allow my children to jump on the couch or beds.  They could take blankets and put them with the cushions, and occasionally the mattresses, to build forts but jumping on furniture was not allowed.  It was one of my attempts at teaching respect for belongings while preserving their usefulness and thus our limited budget.  However, as a Grandmother, I found myself stretching my old rules to accommodate the joy of the child.  With Aliná’s delightful laughs and smiles, and fueled by the confinement of an apartment, we made up new games that revolved around the couch.  It was so much fun that when Aliná wanted to play, she would tell me she wanted to play the “couch game.”  When you watch the attached video clip  of one version of the game, please be sure to notice that although I was standing on the couch, I did not jump on the couch; just off it.  But after so many years of my Kauffman enforced “couch rules” I felt a little guilty even standing on the couch so thanks Lindsey and Adam for putting up with my Peter Pan antics. It was great fun! I found so much enjoyment playing with a two year old.  I look forward to more creative play with grandchildren in the years to come.  What now?  With the help of a little "Pixie Dust" I left Never, Never Land and traveled back to the reality of a whole year in NYC.  (Copy and paste the following URL to see a video clip of the grandma game:  <iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/enIKEw6YSE0" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen></iframe>

Anna

Alina, the big sister.

I love holding newborns!

Getting a ride in the laundry basket.

Attitudes of Gratitude

       It is "Black Friday" and since we live across the street from the Queens Mall you can try to imagine the new sights and sounds we are experiencing; not exactly the quiet neighborhood of Cedar Hills, Utah.  Stan and I are presently snug in our comfortable little fourth floor apartment enjoying Christmas music and working on our individual projects at a pace much more enjoyable than the people down on the street are experiencing.  The CD player is randomly playing through the five different Cd's and every so often we hear the CD Aubrey's junior high choir made back in 1996 with Mrs. Jolley as the choir director.  One might think the Mountain Ridge Junior SSA Choir would not hold up to the famous individuals commonly listened to at Christmas time, but the her choir music not only sounds great it brings back enjoyable memories of years gone by.  We were so blessed to have lived 25 years in Utah County.  What a beautiful place filled with faithful people and wonderful opportunities; a great formula for raising a family.
       After spending four years in northern California we arrived in Cedar Hills in early June of 1985.  We had Don, David, Aubrey, and I was four months pregnant with our fourth child, Lindsey.  Earlier in May of that year Stan and I had gone on a "house hunting mission" to Utah with the express request from the children that we "get a place with a big pack yard."  The home we found in Cedar Hills was the perfect place for us.  Not only did it naturally have a large back yard but there were hardly any fences marking yard boundaries.  Thus, "our" back yard, in our children's minds, consisted of the Hall's, the Shepherd's, and our yard.  If we said, "stay in the yard," this "yard"was where we could expect to find a child.  Besides being a larger home for us and having a big yard we had a view of Utah Valley, Utah Lake, the mountains, and eventually Mt. Timpanogos Temple; all of this for $2,000 less than we sold our California home. With our home facing west we learned to feast on the countless beautiful sunsets before our eyes most nights of the year.  "Come and see the beautiful sunrise!" became a common summons from one family member to another.
       However, there was one thing we were not able to offer our children while living in Utah; cultural diversity.  The home we left in California was a pre WWII era, flat-roofed, two bedroom, converted carport extra room home.  It was our first home, and we were grateful to have it.  It was located in West Pittsburgh (now known as Bay Point) which was the bottom of the housing market in Contra Costa County and unfortunately in a rough neighborhood.  One of our neighbors was a known drug dealer, but he and his siblings liked Stan and were nice to us because Stan had given them a new piece of Armstrong flooring (the company Stan worked for before going into the Church Education System) for their street break dancing.  Although the neighborhood was culturally diverse, we felt it was too rough to raise our children and were grateful for Stan's transfer to Utah.
       Now, without children at home, Stan and I are living in a three-bedroom apartment on the fourth floor of a 50-year-old flat-roofed building in a culturally diverse neighborhood.  We are enjoying the experience.  Queens, New York is known for its diversity and is the  home to people of numerous nationalities.  Sometimes, as I am walking down the street, I become aware that I am the only native born, English speaking "pink" person (as Stan call us) in sight and I ask myself.  "Do I feel safe and accepted?" and gratefully, the answer has always been, "Yes."  Despite the challenge of living so far away from those we love we are grateful for this opportunity to live here and make new friends.  We hope our children and friends will come and visit us and experience a taste of the cultural diversity we are enjoying.
       Oh, how we wish we could speak a foreign language or two.  It sure would be helpful.  Maybe the "Can Do" attitude is all we really need to have to get over our fears of trying.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtYg1roxkoI

Our sunset from our 4th floor apartment in Elmhurst, NY.

Our sunset from our home in Cedar Hills, Utah.

Family & Fall Feasts

     October was a wonderful month. From October 13th – 20th Don, Janey, and Dmitri came to visit us here in New York. Don and Janey said they had a good time, but it could not have been better than mine. Dmitri was adorable, and I was able to soak up as much of him as I wanted. Each day we hung out together while his parents went off and dined on tasty cuisines. As far as I’m concerned, it was the best arrangement. We were able to see and visit with Don and Janey and know they were having a good time while we feasted on the enjoyment of a grandchild! 

     We've always wanted to experience New England, with all its foliage in the fall. We scheduled our retreat for October 22nd – 23rd. (It helped to have something to look forward to after Don, Janey, and Dmitri left us.) Stan let me choose the location of our get-away, and I chose Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Even though we are right here on Long Island we are busy enough that we have had little experience with the Atlantic Ocean. Thus, I wanted a small seaport town that was a reasonable drive for only a two-day retreat. Although we were a little late in the season and many trees had already dropped their leaves, it was still a feast for sore eyes. The weather was very crisp but clear. We loved it! While going to Portsmouth we took the quickest route, but on Saturday we drove 1A along the New Hampshire Atlantic coastline until we got to close to Boston where we got back on the freeway and bee-lined it home. Next October we plan to get away earlier in the month and see another beautiful New England fall.

Buses, Plays, & Subway Rats

Week Ending Sept. 26, 2010

This week I saw my first subway rat.  I have been told the subways are full of rats and no doubt this is true, but I had never actually seen one, until last Friday afternoon.  I was waiting for the 1 train at Times Square, on my way to the Manhattan Temple, when I saw it down on the tracks scrounging for food.   It did not look so bad down there all by it self, but if there were more than one, or if they were up on my level, it would be very unnerving.  Thursday evening, as we were traveling back from seeing an off Broadway play called, The 39 Steps, (a spin-off of an Alfred Hitchcock mystery/thriller that was very enjoyable) our friend, Gwen Hagland, did see a rat up where we were standing waiting for a train.  But by the time I turned around to look, it was gone.  (Gratefully)

Another adventure for me last week was to ride the Q60 bus all by myself to the Queens Stake Center building at Woodside at night.  This is the same building Dad has his office in and it is also where he teaches an institute class on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.  I thought it could not be very difficult to ride the bus straight up Queens Blvd. and get off a few blocks from Dad’s building.  Nevertheless, the bus was late, it grew dark, and I was nervous.  New Yorkers can be vocally impatient with people who do not stand in line the correct New York way, and since I did not understand the “bus etiquette” rules, I did not want to give cause for someone to say something rude.  Signs on the bus actually tell the passengers to enter the front door and exit the back door and the front seats are saved for the elder or handicapped.  But people pile out both doors or sometimes the back door does not seem to open and everyone comes out the front.  Not knowing if the back door would open when I wanted to get off, I worked my way to the front so that I could get off at the stop I wanted.  Later, I asked Anita, one of Dad’s students, how it was supposed to work. She told me to push the “Stop Wanted” button the stop before I wanted to get off and when the green lights lit up around the back door, to push it open.  She also told me that buses do not have to stop at every stop if there is no one waiting at the stop to get on and if the “stop wanted” button has not been pushed. I am thinking about figuring out what buses I could ride to go to the fabric store and back, so this is very helpful information to have. 

Stan & I with our friends, Howard & Gwen Haglund.