Spring Break in Utah--Day 4 The Party

The main purpose of this trip was to celebrate my Grandma Olsen's 80th Birthday. The party was held Sunday, April 3rd (the day before her birthday). She said it was to celebrate her last day of being 79.

The last time we had visited Utah, Caroline was 4 and Carter was 2.  It has been a long time since I had seen most of my cousins and I had never met many of their kids and some of the spouses.  A few of my cousins weren't there, but almost all of them were able to be there.

A picture of everyone that came...and no that isn't my son that is pulling a face in every one of the group pictures...I know it looks like Carter, but he would never do that.

Once everyone arrived at the party we had dinner.  Following dinner was a touching tribute to my Grandma--she and my grandpa are amazing people.  I feel very blessed to have them as grandparents.

Some of my favorite memories are those of my grandma.  Grandma is one of the best cooks I have ever met.  No matter how many people she had for dinner (and when the whole family got together there were a lot of people) she always had more than could be eaten for one meal.  She would start cooking days in advance for any family party, and when we stayed at her house the food was never lacking.  She never had a recipe--when you would ask for one (as was done over and over and over) she would just say "oh I just throw stuff together, a little of this and a little of that"  If you wanted to figure it out you would have to watch her as she made it and write everything down with a best guess of measurements, because she did just throw it all together.  Even at 80 years old she still spent days in the kitchen cooking for everyone (as much as we tried to stop her and do it for her).

Grandma and Grandpa and all their kids and their spouses

When I was in college Grandma and Grandpa did so much for me I can never repay them.  The first 3 years at school I didn't have a car.  Anytime I needed them, they would pick me up and take me where I needed to go--the grocery store, their house to do laundry, the airport, the bank, whatever I needed they were right there and the whole time they made me feel like I was doing them a favor to let them take me.

Jennifer with Grandma and Grandpa

When Matt was in Law School, we spent so much time with my grandparents.  Our favorite was to go up to the canyon for a "weenie roast".  Often they would come up to where we were camping and we would have dinner together.  We would take trips up to South Fork and Vivian together roast hot dogs and watch Caroline play.  The first year that we were married we didn't have a washer or dryer and they let us use theirs, once again making us feel like we were doing them the favor by using it.  We spent almost every Sunday evening at their house talking and visiting with relatives that dropped by.  Grandma helped me bottle pears and peaches so I could use them for baby food for Caroline.  We would take a little push toy that Caroline liked and she would go round and round in circles while we visited.  It always meant so much to us to have them around---it made being away from our families so much easier.

My family with Grandma and Grandpa...and one of the only pictures the entire vacation where Carter wasn't pulling a face.

Growing up I loved it when we went to Grandma's house.  Of course, the best thing (besides Grandma and Grandpa, of course) were the "soft blankets".  The Soft Blankets were patchwork quilts made from the pajamas her kids wore when they were little.  This flannel was made before the safety standards were in place for fire-resistant sleepwear for children....it was the kind of flannel that grew softer and softer every time you washed it--and as old as those blankets were, and as many times as they had been washed, they were the softest things I have ever felt--to this day.  There were only 2 of these blankets and 5 kids so it was a race to get inside and claim the blankets for the first night...we had to rotate who slept with them at night, but it was first come first served who got to cuddle with them during the day.   Nothing better than wrapping up in one of the soft blankets and playing solitaire (with cards, not a computer) on the floor of Grandma's family room.

Alex isn't big on hugging and he was the only one of my kids that wouldn't give Grandma a hug--until after the party he ran up and gave her a big hug...

So many other great memories of Grandma....Easter Egg hunts, playing in their huge back yard, the swings, climbing the trees, getting on the roof never climbing on the roof even though it was so tempting and so easy to get up on,  The storage area she had under the house filled with all kinds of treasures, playing with my cousins, family parties for any and every event or excuse we could come up with, the Christmas parties with Santa--who knew all about what we had done that year even though all of the family members were present....it was always fun with Grandma.

My cousin Emily and I (and Aaron who is sleeping)

Grandma and Grandpa loved to drive---they never, to this day, have taken the shortest route anywhere.  When we lived in Layton it was about 60 minutes to get from their house to our house.....but when Grandma and Grandpa drove it never took less than 5-6 hours, I think once they drove through Wyoming coming to hour house.  They could tell you about every road, every town, and every great place to see because they had been there.

Grandma and Grandpa and my cousin Merilee's kids--why do my kids never pose that well?

 

 My grandma gave me all kinds of advice over the years--I could never begin to list all the things I learned from her, but there are a couple of things that really stand out.  The biggest is "if you don't have any expectations then you won't be disappointed".   That may sound like a strange piece of advice, but it is an amazing thing when you put it to your relationships.  It basically means to be happy with whatever you get---don't expect an amazing gift for your birthday/mother's day/Christmas etc--if you get something then great, enjoy it, if not you are still happy with what you have.   So many times I hear people complaining about their husbands, parents, siblings, etc. for not getting them what they wanted or putting as much thought into something that they should have and I realize how valuable that lesson is (now, I'm not saying I'm perfect at it, but at least I try).  That advice allows you to enjoy everything you have any time spent with friends and family without being disappointed that it wasn't as good as you had hoped.  What a great way to live.

 Grandma Olsen and my cousin Anna

I am so lucky to have such an amazing person in my life.  After listening to all that was said to Grandma at her party, I can only hope that someday my family will come close to saying the same about me.....the love and dedication of her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren is something that you can't buy with money...only with time and love.

My cousin Amy and nephew Aidan

My cousin Emily's daughter Kennedy

Tyler and Grant that we have missed so much!

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Uncle Jeff and his son Peter and half of Lindsay

Uncle Mike and his sons Greg and Matt

Russ and Parker--who grew up without our permission!

Aunt Debbie and my cousin Anna's family

Caroline--always the life of the party

A few pictures Matt took outside of the building where we had the party--it had snowed earlier in the day and the mountains looked beautiful!