{60 years}

"It is important that children understand their heritage, that they feel a part of a family chain. That is another reason to make good choices as parents, to honor the family name, and to follow the example of a grandparent or great-grandparent who began what has become a righteous tradition."
--Geri Brinley, The Book of Mormon A Pattern For Parenting

This is my Grandma & Grandpa A, my mom's parents. . they've been married for sixty years! My mom and her brothers and sisters held an open house for their parents last Sunday evening. They had so much fun visiting with the people that came to see them. . some they hadn't seen in years. They were so excited and felt so honored and loved. They were so happy and grateful.

My grandparents have been such great examples and teachers. They have raised six children, who have raised 21 grandchildren and almost 40 great-grandchildren. . and they taught us all the importance of FAMILY.

When I was young, I remember going to Grandma's house almost every Saturday morning because my mom and her sisters would do something together. . shopping, color their hair, etc. and the grandkids would get to play together. We would go to Grandma's house on Sunday afternoons to visit and play. We always got together every Christmas season to dip candy together. Every Christmas morning we would go to Grandma and Grandpa's for breakfast. I have bottled tomato juice with a bunch at Grandma's house several times. Our family has taken MANY camping trips together. Although some of these traditions have recently slowed or come to an end because the family has gotten so big, we still manage to get together every Mother's & Father's days, Grandma & Grandpa's birthdays, and everytime someone gets married, blesses a baby, gets baptized, goes through the temple, leaves or comes home from a mission, etc. If anyone has a problem or needs something, we can always count on each other to help out. It gives a certain sense of confidence to know that you have so much support when you need it.

G & G have always loved supporting the kids and grandkids in anything we did. They love going to ballgames, but the last couple of years have had to slow down. Gma has taught me how to keep a clean house, make and dip candy, make tomato juice, and (Shane's favorite) make coconut & banana cream pie among other things. Gpa has always been a great example of a priesthood holder. He's done his fair share of blessings, baptisms, etc. He can turn each moment into a teaching moment. One quality my Gpa has that I wish I had more of is his ability to b.s. We can go somewhere with Gpa and not know anyone. . and if we give him enough time, he'll know everyone before we leave. He has that awesome ability to walk up to a complete stranger and just start talking like they are old friends. (Sometimes when you're in a hurry to leave, it's not such a great quality.)

G & G are WONDERFUL examples, and continue to teach me a lot about life. It makes me sad to watch them get older and not be able to be as involved in the things that they want to do. Thank you G & G for being so GREAT! We wish you at least ten more happy years together. . Happy Anniversary!!