CoCo's Corner

Memorial Day is a day of remembrance. As Ted was telling KayeLynn and I earlier today, it was a day set aside to remember the fallen soldiers, to remember the lives they lost. It evolved into a day to remember all those who have passed before us. Those we loved - those we lost. Being a baby boomer, there are a few people that have left me behind. I've lost aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, acquaintances, in-laws. The most significant being a husband and my dad. Now, my dad, he was a rather awesome kind of man. He was a World War II veteran. He went to war in the Pacific. It was not something he really ever talked about. We don't know really anything that he faced, anything he saw, anything he did while fighting in the South Pacific. He came back home, to southern Utah and shortly afterward met my mom at a dance. My gosh, you should have seen the two of them dance - it was amazing!! I think I only saw it once at a wedding, but, holy cow!! They had moved from he...

OK - I don't really have an embarrassing story about Ted. OMG - I just lied!!! I do, I do!!! A couple of years ago, we traveled to Orlando, Florida by way of Decatur, Alabama to go to Ted's brother Mike's wedding. The couple's story was very interesting to begin with (she asked him to be a sperm donor so she could have a baby - they were friends before that - he agreed - they had a baby together - when their son Max was about four, they realized they were in love - they got married). Anyway, we went to Orlando for the wedding. It was the first time I got to see the Catholic in my husband - and I have to say, it made me love him even more to see that (I've seen it a couple of times since). So the only other sibling there, besides the two brothers, was Ted's sister Susan. Ted's family lives all over the country and it's difficult for them to get together like that. I have not even met all of them. So, we are at the wedding. Very beautiful we...

I have told stories about my kids - and their not so gracious, best moments. So, I will tell a couple of stories about myself. Some of you probably already know these stories - so sorry!! When I taught POST classes, I always started the week and had them do an introduction and in that there had to be a "most embarrassing moment". I am an equal opportunity story teller and to make them feel better, I always tell them my favorite most embarrassing moments. Now, I've told you how I fall down and some things like that - but, here are my most embarrassing moments that I like to tell: #1 - A long, long time ago, back in my old house I was sitting there when my daughter, Crystal came in the house. She was laughing, hysterically might I add and couldn't talk. Now, let me background this by saying, I am one of those people who wear their jeans more than one time. The second time you wear your jeans is when they fit just perfectly - the point when they are stretched and...

Yep - it's the boys turn. Now, after dealing with all girls for the first part of motherhood, I ended up getting this boy. Now, I can tell you, that I love my kids, but there really is a different bond between a boy and his mom. Whereas, I got very excited about my daughter getting married, I had a panic attack when my son announced. I guess that is all tied to the old saying "a daughter is a daughter all her life, a boy is a son til he takes a wife". Yep, I was losing my boy - I was just sure of it. But, that's not the story I want to tell. I'm going to tell you about a trip we took. A trip to Cody, Wyoming. I think Rodger was 14 or 15 years old. Crystal was working for SkyWest and I decided I wanted us to go on an adventure. We got passes and benefits on Skywest planes and so we took a small 30-seater plane to Cody, Wyoming. It was actually outside of Cody that we were staying. We stayed at a guest ranch called Elephant Head Lodge - named after so...

It took a long time to figure out what to write about with KayeLynn. She's kinda a little bugger, cuz it really wasn't easy to remember anything. I asked her brother and sister and all they could think of was her dressing the cats up and putting them in a stroller to take them for walks around the block when she was little and they were kittens. I think about these stories and I wonder how in the world my children survived their childhood. So after thinking about it, I thought I would discuss Aunt BooBoo's penchant for eating stuff that she shouldn't as a toddler. I can't remember the chronological order of things, but, I can tell you that when KayeLynn was younger, I knew the number for Poison Control by heart. I think the first thing I remember is laying on the couch with Crystal, watching television and realizing I hadn't heard anything from KayeLynn for a while. You know that feeling, something's up!! I go in and check on her and she has st...

I have decided that to begin my 100th post, I am going to start giving embarassing, crazy, silly, scary, funny, interesting stories about my children. They have all done stuff that I think people would find interesting or amusing. I have raised a group of crazy kids - but, they are all awesome and I love them dearly. Crystal: So, this girl is the most normal member of my family. The last few years she has gotten a little nuttier - but, that is normal when you have children. I should know. I am not sure how she got so normal, since it's probably pretty lucky that she is even with us. Her version differs a little bit from mine, so I am just going to give my version. Back when Crystal was an itty bitty kid, there were really no stringent laws on restraining your children. When I left the hospital with her when she was born, I held her in my arms as we drove home. She pretty much stayed in my arms like that her entire babyhood - that's just how ya did it back in the old...

This is my 99th post. It's just one shy of 100. I really don't have anything awesome to say or talk about. Just wanted to see the number 99 on my dashboard counter. It's kind of a crazy world right now. There are tornadoes that have devastated the southern part of the country. My stepdaughter and her family live right in the heart of where these tornadoes lighted. They lived for about four days in devastation and a world with no power. But, they made do. They had community barbecues in their apartment complex. The kids played outdoors and hung out instead of playing video games and watching movies. Osama Bin Laden is dead. Killed by special forces. Japan is still trying to recover from a horrific tragedy; an earthquake, tsunami and many after shocks. Their world is in complete devastation from the possible meltdown of a nuclear reactor. It's hardly even mentioned in the news anymore because there is so many other craziness and tragedy going on. Wow - this...