Happy Birthday Mom

This is a poem written by a member of our ward in Bismarck, North Dakota, Brother Wal Habib, that he wrote about my mom. Brother Habib had told me a memory he had about Mom, and so, I asked him if he could write it down for me, because I'm collecting as many memories of Mom and Clarence that I can get. So, he came up with this:

Grand Mother

Karen Atwood wasn't known by the world, however she was renown.
She wasn't even known by most in her mid size town.
I will always remember the last impression she made on me.
Though not even knowing I was watching her secretly.

Observing her as I was parked in a lot located at the Gateway Mall.
She was walking to her vehicle that was not too large yet not too small.
She was walking with her children still living at home.
They were gathered around her, as I sat in my vehicle alone.

The children were well behaved, helped her with loading the car.
The impressing thing about the scene was the love I sensed from afar.
Like a protective hen she gathered her children into the motorized thing.
I didn't know two months later that death would sear its mortal sting.

No, the world didn't know her or will it barely care.
But in lasting memory I will never forget what I saw there.
For I can truly say that I was her religious brother,
More impotantly, I can say she was a grand mother.

More news

Dad is doing a little better today. They gave him some medication for his high blood pressure and that helped bring it down today. He seems to have his appetite back. They also took him for a walk and he was able to walk down the hall and back without blacking out (which is what happened on Sunday). His spirits seem to be higher today. He enjoys phone calls and visitors. Thanks to those of you who have been able to stop by or call. Thanks to the rest of you for your prayers. I know that the Lord is watching over him.

Dad's Owies

Dad's lovely black eye and staples in his head.

If you read Patti's comments on the last post or talked to one of us on the phone, you might already know the most recent news. If not, here you go.

Dad/Grandpa had some more tests done today. They found some blood clots in both lungs. They think this is why he blacked out due to the fact that he's not getting enough oxygen. They put in a filter to catch any more blood clots. They will need to thin his blood, but can't do that until the bleeding near his brain is under control. They're going to keep him under observation for at least a couple of days. He also has problems with the rhythm of his heart which is making his blood pressure spike. Bob and Josh came down tonight to give Dad a blessing.

He is in room 214 of the ICU at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo. He can have visitors 12 years and older. If he gets moved back to a regular room and can receive calls, I will update again.

Info about Dad/Grandpa

Hi all, just got a phone call from Mom/Grandma and Bob. Dad fell down some stairs at Andy's dorm and got a concussion. He lost consciousness for about 10 minutes or so and was admitted to Utah Valley Hospital for observation since they don't know if he blacked out before the fall or because of the fall. According to Mom, the x-ray showed two spots where there was bleeding on the brain. The physician who put in the 4 staples for the laceration he received on his head, indicated that Dad might be in the hospital for 3-4 days. And Mom said that he has a "beautiful black eye" to boot.
Mom is back in Brigham and Bob and Josh are going to the hospital to give Dad a blessing tomorrow.
Keep him and her in your prayers and we'll keep you updated as we know more.
Love ya all

Melody

I suggested to Melody that it was time to let the entire family know about her heart condition since it was getting hard to keep track of who knew what. Today we had a follow up visit with her cardiologist to review her latest tests. In January she had an abnormal EKG which lead to an abnormal echo cardiogram, then to an MRI and nuclear medicine scan. What these tests have uncovered is that Melody was born with some abnormal veins from her lung to her heart and an atrial septal defect (abnormal hole between upper chambers of her heart). She does not have any symptoms from this that she is aware of. It has caused her heart to be enlarged. We are now going to see the Cardiologists at UCSF with plans to have corrective surgery in July. Her doctor assured us that this is not an emergency situation but that eventually she would need to have it corrected. Recovery from surgery would take 6 weeks, but she would be able to return to full activity after 8 weeks.

McGee Family Reunion: Putting the Nuts Back in the Fudge

You know what they say, Families are like fudge - mostly sweet with a few nuts. Well, with our family I'd have to say its the other way around! :)
Anyway, we are getting closer to the time of the annual McGee Family Reunion (ok, its still nearly 4 months away) and we are trying to get some things planned. We kind of need to know some information, though.

The Reunion is planned for Friday August 14-Saturday August 15 (starting in the evening on Friday and going to late afternoon/early evening on Saturday). We need to get a count of how many people think they will be coming. So, everyone please respond to this post with the following information:
1. Will you be able to attend?
2. Will you be coming up Friday night or Saturday morning? We are planning a dinner on Friday to start around 7pm, but if you can't get there until later, if we know you are coming, we can make sure there is food left for you.
3. What kind of equipment do you have that you can bring and how much? The reunion is being held at a cabin, but people will need to have tents to camp in. If you don't want to sleep in a tent, there is a town about a half-hour drive away that has a hotel, but it will probably be expensive. We would like to get an idea of how many of these items everyone has so we can make adjustments for those who do not have any or cannot bring them.
-Tents?
-Tarps?
-Sleeping bags?
-Foam pads/air mattresses?
4. Finally, how long would you be planning on staying on Saturday? We are also planning a dinner on Saturday to start around 4 with an activity right after dinner (its a surprise, but going to be a lot of fun). We can adjust the starting time of the dinner if most people will need to leave earlier. We want everyone to participate in this activity because it will be the grand finale!

We have a lot of fun things in the works: games, tournaments, activities for kids of all ages, and food. However, we cannot do it alone. We would like to start a reunion fund: $10 per family, $5 if you are single. This should hopefully cover the main dishes for both dinners (everyone would need to bring a side/dessert), trophies, prizes, candy, and smores. If there is any extra money left, it can be put towards next year's reunion as well. Breakfast will also be taken care of on Saturday, so the only meal you would need to worry about is lunch on Saturday (but we are having an early dinner, so it could be a light lunch) or any snacks. We'll have more details about that coming soon.
If you aren't sure if you will be able to come, but think you possibly will be able to, please reply in the affirmative so that we can make sure we enough equipment for everyone. We will need definite answers when it gets closer to the reunion and we need to start buying food/prizes, etc.

I hope everyone can come, it is going to be a great time to relax and spend time with your family!

P.S. You are welcome to go up earlier. If you do, any food will be your own responsibility until the reunion starts. I believe Monty and Heidi will be up there the whole week.
The pictures included here are from previous family activities that I took pictures at. As much fun as these things were, the reunion is going to be a lot better!

Family Blog

After a request from Jennifer and many constant reminders, I have created a blog for our family. Here is the link for it: http://theandertonsdownsouth.blogspot.com/ This is so Jennifer has her own little page to post whatever she wants about Kleigh.

Kleigh

Tea Party

Beautiful day in San Francisco with a few hundred friends. Can you see me? The only reason you can see me is because I'm standing on a bench.

Our own blog

If you'd like to read the latest about us, http://cherrys-family.blogspot.com/.

Cade's one month old

This picture was too cute not to share. Happy Easter everyone.

Hey Hey Hey!!!

If anyone would like to view pictures/videos of Daniel birthday and some other fun things that we have been up to this past year. Here is how you do it.. Stand on one toe well picking your nose and squinting at the same time....! JK. Adam created a website for us to keep you guys all updated. It also has a chat page that is completly safe, we are both usually loged in during the day and you can be to if you would like. All you have to do to check it out is go to www.AdamandBetsy.net it is really neat so check it out and let us know what you think.
Thanks to all Love ya Betsy :)

Daniels Birthday Pictures

Hello everyone,

If you would like to see pictures and videos of daniel you can go to www.adamandbetsy.net. Click on the photo gallery and you can see daniel, click on the video gallery and you can see videos of daniel. I just uploaded his birthday pictures and videos, including one of him scarfing down his birthday cake.

Happy Birthday Sam

Happy Birthday Sam. I can't believe you are 14!! You've come a long ways but you'll always be my baby brother . . .