Still behind!

Lots going on - the May flowers are arriving early.

 

We are still in quarantine - isn't real tough for us, but I will be ready to get back to normal - I think!

 

It's the anniversary of Marjorie's death - we miss her still!

 

It's been gray and rainy - and I love it - lots of walking!!

 

A happy Easter!!

 

The rain!! Love it!!

I am getting more and more behind!!

Love that sweet Keesa! 

When Noah married Taylor, a side benefit was adding Keesa to grandchildren roster. She is a lovely young woman - and I just can't imagine our family without her now!

Happy day to you this month!!

Welcome to the double digits!!

A short month - will be gone before I know it!!

A busy month, even if it is the shortest - but it's a day longer this year!

And Esme turns 18!!

 

Ara will have a bridal shower!!

 

We celebrated Pop!

 

Hopefully Valentine's Day will be a winner - it usually is!

 

And David gets to celebrate too!

 

And Henry has a mission call - to Mongolia!!

A jam-packed month - at least we are in SoCal and it's cozy and warm!!

Where did the last year go??

It was a long, eventful year - and just like that, it's another year!

The highlight of the season was going with the Selanders and the Bolanders to do temple baptisms - and I was a witness!

We enjoyed being with most of the family - Phoebe and family and Hannah and family were not with us this year, but we feel connected and look forward to next year.

I need to do this posting more often - playing catchup is my least favorite activity!!

Month of Gratitude - days 27, 28, 29, and 30!

Got bogged down the last four days of the Month of Gratitude. So I picked four random photos that had 4 people in them. And sure enough, there was something to be grateful for in each one of them.

I am grateful for cousins and sisters-in-law! Frances always said she grew up wishing she had a sister - and she is as good as a biological sister - I am grateful for her and her children and the part they have played - and still play - in our lives.

Well, when you get married, you get a new family.  I am indeed grateful to be a Terrill - and for the blessing it has been - and continues to be - to be part of the Terrill family.

 

I loved being Young Women President in our ward for 4 years - and loved the women I worked with.  I am grateful for that opportunity that I had.

 

Just like it's great to move into a new family, it is great to have someone move into yours. I am grateful for Dawn and the blessing she is to Harry and her children - and to us!! The Terrill sisters were happy to welcome a new sister - because you can never have too many sisters.

Month of Gratitude - days 25 and 26

For two of my summers as a college student, I worked as a playground recreation leader for LAUSD. I had fond memories myself of going to the playground in the summertime, so it didn't seem a lot like work.  We did have a weekly inservice on Wednesdays, but they were fun and instructive. In fact, the first time I went, I was in a group with my former 4th grade teacher - was really great to re-connect.

I also coached the 6th grade girls volleyball team - me, the non-athlete, coaching a team.  But it was fun - I got a book and found out the rules - and instructed the girls - they were good - they just needed a cheerleader. 

I am grateful for a summer of fun and learning - and these little girls came to my wedding reception later that year!

Month of Gratitude - days 23 and 24

Seems fitting to have this photo of two people to commemorate the 2 days I have to catch up on!!

Spent this weekend with Leslie and her family - and a wonderful time was had by all!

I am grateful for so many things this photo projects - sisters, enjoying one another's company, visiting family, celebrating birthdays, and memories.

I could wish  that I still looked as young - but that would mean I'd have to re-live all those years.

Grateful for progress - even with the wrinkles!

Days of Gratitude - 20, 21, 22!

Since I have missed 3 days again, seems fitting to post a picture featuring a trio - in this case a trio of Clayton sisters!

This was Christmas, obviously, and it looks like we were dressed in our finery.

I am grateful for Christmas memories of yore - when we were a family that didn't include any inlaws - or outlaws!!

It's good to grow - but then again it's good to reflect on the years of the "Clayton family!"

Month of Gratitude, day 19

These students are among the first students I had when I began teaching. I think I had only been teaching for 2 or 3 years.

The girl in the front was Lily Royalty - a lovely name. A cute girl - but one who didn't have the best home life and who never really found happiness. In fact, she found drugs - and her life was shortened as a result.

Her teachers at the high school tried to help her, but perhaps it was too late.

So why am I grateful? I am grateful because she seemed happy when she was in class with me. I am grateful that I apparently made a difference - at least for a short time - in her life.

I encountered many Lily's in my years of teaching. And I tried my best to help them. Some succeeded. Some didn't. 

But I am grateful for the chance to make a difference - even if only for a short time.

Day 18 of the Month of Gratitude!

I am grateful for the Activity Days program in the church - at least the program they used to have - and the new one will be great too - but I have always wanted to be the Activity Days leader!

Because of my love for the program, I always volunteered to do a Poetry or Literature lesson - and it was always fun!

These girls are grown and flown now - it was a long time ago!!

Grateful I got to work with them!

Days 15, 16, 17 of the Month of Gratitude!

I am so behind - it's three days, so I went looking for photos of trios of kids - and found these treasures.

 

The spacing of our children was almost like three separate families - Bonny and Harry, Phoebe, and the little kids!

 

Who grew into some lovely "big kids!"

Grateful indeed - and Harry always says if they'd all come closer together, I might not have managed it well!

Maybe he's right!  

Month of Gratitude - days 13 and 14!

Since I missed a day, I will include two photos and call it even!

Does everyone have an Aunt Dorothy? It seems that way.

I had one - and Harry had one - and we both loved them dearly.

Everyone should have an Aunt Dorothy!!

So grateful for both Aunt Dorothys!

Month of Gratitude - day 12

I am grateful for games - and grandkids who like to play them with me!

As a kid growing up, we mostly played Old Maid or Monopoly - sometimes the games would go on for days and we'd have to make more paper money!

The fun of playing games often gets lost in the shuffle of movies and video games - but I have found that most kids can be tempted to try a real board or card game.

I am not such a fan of Candyland though! (Or Chutes and Ladders!)

Month of Gratitude - day 11

Soldiers - and doctors and nurses and teachers and drivers and workers and so many have given their lives in war or have supported the fighting contingents - and I am grateful for their sacrifices.

I also fervently hope that one day we will find an alternative to war - for that I think we all would be eternally grateful!

Month of Gratitude - Day 10

Grateful for Harry's parents - for loving me and our children - and for raising Harry to be the fine man that he is.

And grateful that they were a big part of our lives and that their influence is still felt.

Month of Gratitude - Day 9

Grateful for Terrill grandkids - there are 23 now - and at this moment, there is not a current photo.

Back when there were 8 grandkids!

It's a never-ending quest to have a current photo, with all the grandkids, all with a pleasant expression and facing in the same direction!

We love these great kids - and count them among the most treasured blessings in our lives!

Month of Gratitude Day 8: We love that Noah!!

Oh, that cute Noah - we are go glad he is part of our family! He loves to perform - always has, probably always will!

He completes our family - and we are grateful he came to our home!

Month of Gratitude - Day 7

Oh that cute Hannah! She has always been one to not let stuff get in her way.  She learned to crawl in spite of casts for 6 months to correct her club feet. And she didn't let the crazy brace she had to wear at night interfere with sleeping!

She continues to learn and grow and explore and find new options - she is an inspiration - so grateful she is a member of our family!

Gratitude - Day 6

So grateful for Eliza - such a blessing in our lives.

I vividly recall when she got out of the house once - and walked to the middle of Hillcrest - she was about 18 months old! Someone brought her back to our house - we had not noticed she was gone - I think I thought she was in the back yard playing.

They knew where to bring her because she had a Medic Alert bracelet.  And she had a Medic Alert bracelet because I was in charge of the PTA Medic Alert bracelet sale at the kids' school!

(We had a foster son who was living with us - and not particularly adjusting well - and he had opened the front door!)

So grateful she survived all that!!

She makes our family better and brighter just by being who she is!!

Gratitude - day 5

There are 5 years between Harry and Phoebe - and those seemed like a long 5 years. The children kept asking for a brother or sister - and didn't understand why we weren't heeding their request.

One Family Home Evening, we talked about how much we wanted another child and suggested that we fast and pray about it. Bonny and Harry were young, but they wanted to do it. And so we had a special Fast Sunday and prayed specifically for a new baby - and lo and behold, the next month I got pregnant with Phoebe!

Bonny and Harry were not as surprised as we were - they had expected their prayers to be answered!

At one point before this action, Bonny had told several people in the ward that we were having a baby - I think in her young mind she thought that if she told that to people, I'd make sure it happened. When we told them we were indeed having a new baby, we told Bonny she could be the one to announce it at church.  Imagine her chagrin when no one believed her!

Phoebe - whose name means light - is indeed a light in our family!

Gratitude - days 3 and 4

Bonny and Harry - kids one and two - and just them until Phoebe came - and there were good times.

 

Mostly the Rock House years in Centerville come to mind - lots of adventures.

 

They were both small enough that many of the memories are vague for them - Harry and I try to keep them alive - but they were lovely, special years and we are grateful for them.

Gratitude - days one and two!

Grateful for loving parents and a houseful of siblings. Can't say I always appreciated my parents or my siblings - but I do now!

A blessing indeed!

 

Grateful that I went to BYU and found the man of my dreams - even if I didn't know it at the time!!

It's been a wonderful 52 years and looking forward to forever!

Halloween!

Halloween has a place in the Terrill annals - some years it has been more prominent than others though!

The year we moved to Monrovia, Bonny wanted to be Miss America, Harry wanted to be Luke Skywalker, and Phoebe just loved dressing up.

And it all came out pretty well!

 

And many years later, Star Wars was still on the list for preferred costumes - Henry as a young Luke is charming also - just like his Uncle Harry!

Wonder what this year will bring??

"Try to remember the kind of September . . ."

There is an old song - "Try to Remember" - that came to mind today. I thought about it being September 1st - and all that means - and used to mean.

It usually means back to school, end of summer.

 

54 years ago it meant staying home a semester from BYU to save up to go to France for a Study Abroad. Such a great time in my life. Lots of good memories.

Lots of birthdays - Helen and Eve share one.

 

Harry shares his day with about 8 other people we know! Must be a good day.

 

Ella shares a bday with our good friend Sue Cornwall! 

 

And Taylor's is the day before

Summer may be over, but it's still hot. But the days are shorter.

The focus changes even as the leaves do - albeit much more slowly in SoCal than they do elsewhere.

It's time to think about holidays - Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years.

"Try to remember the kind of September

When life was slow and oh so mellow.

Try to remember the kind of September

When grass was green and grain was yellow.

Try to remember the kind of September

When you were a tender and callow fellow.

Try to remember and if you remember

then follow

follow."

A little summertime reflection!

Found these funny "driving" photos - and have thought about how the grandchildren seem to grow up faster every year.

 

Then I recall that the years flew by with their moms and dads too!

 

Once I said, "The years seem to go by faster every year." And wise Ella said, "Well, maybe that's because there is more behind you than in front of you."

Now there is some food for thought!

Latest read -

I have been spending most of my reading hours on Deborah Crombie novels - and have barreled through 13 of the 14 - but need to save the last one for my plane ride to Virginia next month! (Since her next book does not debut until October!)

Got this from Phoebe when I was there recently - started it but got sidetracked. So I picked it up again and quite enjoyed it.

Somehow stories about people with personality disorders can get tedious at times - but this author was able to create a believable environment that only got tedious a time or two!

At first I thought it was about a young woman on the spectrum - and much of her behavior mimics spectrum behavior - but there is a deeper and more compelling story that emerges.

And I won't say any more in case you plan to read it.

It's a good read - and would work for an airplane ride too!

Reunion time!

We do a Clayton reunion every other year - and this is the year!

Every year I say I'm not going to be in charge the next time. And then I'm in charge the next time!

Fewer and fewer people come every year - and some key players will not be available this year.  So I put it out there on social media that maybe I would not do it.  And of course got lots of "Yes we are coming this year" kind of replies.

I guess we will see.