Here is a email I got from my sister, Kathy. She and Jared are known as the fun Aunt and Uncle! One thing she didn't share was when they first moved into their house, we went up to visit. Their new house is three stories high. It has a laundry shoot from the top level down to the basement where the washer is. On our first house tour she explained this and the kids got all sorts of excited. They started with their voices, hollering back and forth, then socks, shirts, finally stuffed animals. They had been entertained for about 45 minutes when we realized that the stuffed animals were getting larger and larger. We started to joke that they were about the size of a kid. Well surely they wouldn't be dumb enough to try to go through the laundry shoot themselves. We went up and looked at the shoot and sure enough it looked big enough for say, a James size boy to go straight through. The amazing shoot was immediately shut down because we all knew it was only a matter of time before James would have tried it. Well here is her email...
Hey Laura and Joe,
We
were talking the other night about our favorite memories of James and
we kept coming back to the weekend that the kids spent with us. Taking
all the neices and nephews to the drive-in to see Toy Story was a
blast. Some how James heard that we were going to the Dragon not the
drive-in and man was he sooo excited!
We
stopped by Little Caesars to pick up some pizzas for everyone. James,
Grace and Spence came in with me to help carry them out and they each
got balloons. Once we were at the drive-in we had a few slices and I am
pretty sure that James drank a case of Capri Suns.
When
it got a
little darker we broke out the glow Sticks and then the real fun
started. We had about 100 glow sticks and I am pretty sure they used
all of them. They were putting them in thier shoes clothes and making
Hula-Hoops with them. They thought they were cool, and I loved them
because there was no way I could lose one of them because they glowed in
the dark.
After the
movie on the way home the kids stayed up right untill we were getting
off the exit. I swear the entire back seat just went quite. It was the
funniest thing I have ever seen.
The
next day we went to Jareds family re-union. We had a few sandwichs and
then the kids went to play with the water balloons. (remember that
James had just broken his nose a few days before.) So they were playing
water balloon
volley ball. I was watching off to the side when i saw James get hit
in the face with a big balloon and it didn't pop.
I
cringed and waited for him to start crying. He walked over to me and
goes "Kafy that hurt!" I said "I bet it did. Do you want to go sit
down for a bit?" He thought about it for a second and he ran back on
the field to keep playing. What a Tank!!
We
also took them to Church the next day and they came with us to the
Primary class that we taught. We had printed of coloring pages for them
to do since our class was a little older than they were. James though
paid attention and was answering every question that he could. It was
great to watch him and how proud he was when he would get an answer
right.
I feel truly
blessed to have spent that time with him and the other kids! He was one in a million and will always be in my heart!
Jared
wanted me to say that one of his best memories of James is was on our
wedding day. We were all taking family pictures and we were all looking
for James. We turned around and there he was coming out of the
Temple. He had a big smile on his face. It was sooo cute!
We love you guys so much and you are always in our hearts and prayers!
Jared and Kathy
Here is a post from my dad...the big bad wolf. James was named after him. When James was born my dad was in Nevada and drove to Eugene because it was on his way home??? Directionaly challenged, definitely! But very very sweet! He helped us so much and for the first year of James life we lived with grandma and grandpa. They have a very close relationship!
Laura,
I
have had a number of memories that have been coming back to me lately
about James. I first met James a few days after he was born as I drove
to Eugene to help you pack up and move back to Utah. I may have been
imagining things, but I believe he was smiling and trying to laugh even
at that early age. You could sense the nobleness of his spirit, and an
intense desire to move forward. I remember holding James on several
occasions and telling him stories and jokes. Again I was sure he was
smiling.
Fast
forward to when James was three or four. We had just had dinner at
your place in St. George. Spencer, James and Grace had all run out to
play, but James soon came back inside. He asked me why I was so funny.
I replied that it was because I liked to tell jokes. He asked me what a
joke was. I tried to explain about word plays and how that can be
funny. He then asked how to make up a joke. I gave him a few examples,
and the next time I came down, he had several jokes ready to share with
me that he had made up. He was actually pretty good at telling jokes.
I
was always surprised by how well James remembered things. I soon
learned that he never forgot anything, and he was more than willing to
remind you when you forgot. As you remember, James was a great helper
around the house….at least until the night of the magic trick. Again, I
was eating dinner with your family when Spencer asked me to do a magic
trick for them. I replied that I didn’t really know any magic tricks
because I was just an old Grandpa. He replied that all Grandpas knew
magic tricks, and I should not be an exception. Spencer and James
insisted that we use “magic” words before doing the magic trick. I
suggested “hocus pocus,” but they were sure that wasn’t a good magic
word because everyone else would know it too. They rejected “abra
cadabra” and “a la peanut butter sandwiches” for the same reason. They
insisted that we have a magic word that no one else would ever guess.
After thinking for a minute to come up with something that no one else
would be likely to say, I suggested “chili beans make smelly nights.”
They thought that was the best magic phrase ever. They repeated it,
closed their eyes, and I made a strawberry disappear off of my plate by
eating it. They loved the trick and wanted to know how I made the
strawberry disappear. After a time or two, they kept their eyes open to
see what happened to the strawberry. After discovering how I made the
strawberry disappear, they wanted to try it, and we soon finished off
the strawberries and some previously uneaten vegetables. Each time, we
begin the disappearing trick by repeating the magic words.
During
my next visit, I had some candy with me. James asked for a piece, and I
told him he could have some, if he could repeat the magic words. He
got a twinkle in his eyes and quickly repeated “chili beans make smelly
nights.” James soon emptied my pocket of candy. Spencer got in on the
treats after James reminded him about the proper magic words.
Apparently this started something that would eventually get me into a
bit of trouble. It seems that some time later, Laura asked James to
help her with some cleaning. Uncharacteristically, James ignored her.
Laura asked him again to help, and expressed disappointment that he
didn’t come quickly to help as he normally did. She again asked him to
come and help and James simply said, “No.” Laura then went to James and
asked him why he wouldn’t help her. He replied that he wasn’t helping
because she hadn’t said the magic words. She thanked him for reminding
her that she hadn’t said please, and rephrased the question with please
will you help. She was surprised when James again said no. Laura again
asked him why he would help even though she had used the word please.
His response must have been given with his mischievous twinkle in his
eye as he replied that he had said no because she hadn’t used the right
magic words. Laura then tried Thank You, You’re Welcome, etc. but they
all received the same emphatic no. Laura then asked James to help her
remember the right magic words since she apparently could not remember.
He proudly reminded her by saying “Chili beans make smelly nights.”
After Laura repeated the correct magic words, James quickly went about
helping her with the cleaning. This would have been a simply funny
memory for our family, but James wasn’t through with our special magic
words. I am told that when he met with his kindergarten teacher for the
first time, he was asked if he knew what the magic words were. James
again quickly replied with “Chili beans make smelly nights.” Laura was
mortified. Hence I receive a phone message that she was going to have
to preapprove everything I said to the kids.
For good or bad, James and I didn’t always get preapproval as we traded jokes in the future, but that’s another story.
Take Care,
David Hansen aka the big bad wolf!
He also didn't tell you that we were eating dinner with my inlaws and my father in law asked James to use the magic word.... very embarrassing! But funny! There was also a really cute picture where he is peeking over the door of my dad's truck, I can't find it but really sweet. They had come down to visit and I went out and was talking to them in their truck. James kept trying to talk to them but he was to little to, so he ran back to the house and got a stool. He put it next to the door and climbed up so he could talk through the window. pretty funny!
Her is a post from Megan. She would graciously offer to babysit for a rare date night for Joe and I.
Dear Joe and Laura,
I have thought about your family so much over the past year, and since following your blog I have wanted to find some way to share my love with your family. Last night while doing the dishes the thought came to my mind that I have some pictures of James! I looked through all of my CD's any finally found them! I'm pretty sure I might have a few more from when the kids are a little older and Grace was just little so I will continue to look through them.
I always loved watching your kids, I considered myself pretty lucky to live so close to your family and to be able to come hang with you guys when I needed to get away from school and boys :) I loved sleeping over each week when I worked at the dude ranch because it never failed when morning came Spencer and James would come out and lay by me on the air mattress. I've always thought you two have he most photogenic children so that's one reason I remember wanting to take pictures of them...specifically to remember how cute they are and to be able to show my kids someday who I was so lucky to hang out with and babysit. Watching James always kept me on my toes :) I have two very specific memories of babysitting him. The first is while you were gone one time he was drinking a sippy cup of red Crystal Light. I stepped out of the living room for a minute to help Spencer or Grace. He discovered how much fun it was to swing the cup around and spray red drops all over the carpet. I remember walking into the room in a panic as the carpet looked to be splattered with red rain. I frantically spot cleaned it the best I could. When Laura returned home I was a little nervous to tell her what happened, but when I did I remember she smiled and told me it was no big deal and didn't surprise her at all. What a great example it was to me to not sweat the small stuff and to go with the flow. The other memory I have was watching the kids while Laura took a shower. I was back in a bedroom with the kids and James slipped out. Moments later I heard a banging noise and hurried out into the hall to find James with a table knife banging on the wall to the bathroom. I hurried and stopped him and surveyed the damage. It was obvious there were more dings of the same shape than what he had just done in that short moment. When Laura got out I told her what happened and again she smiled and shook her head. She told me that James had done the same thing a few times before to get her attention while she was in the bathroom.
What fun memories these are, as well as the many nights we would stay up talking after the kids were in bed and I would share all of my crazy boy stories and you would give me great advice and encouragement. You two are such great examples of what it means to be true followers of Christ. Your testimonies reflect the love and faith you have for our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. I can't come close to comprehending how it feels to go through such a devastating trial, but I do know that watching you go through this with such fortitude has been a great testimony to me of why we have the gospel and what this life is all about. I love your family so much. I will be in St. George for work the 18th and 19th of this month, I know this will be a difficult weekend for your family, but if you are around I would love to stop by for a minute to give you a hug.
I hope you have a great weekend.
Love,
Megan
I have thought about your family so much over the past year, and since following your blog I have wanted to find some way to share my love with your family. Last night while doing the dishes the thought came to my mind that I have some pictures of James! I looked through all of my CD's any finally found them! I'm pretty sure I might have a few more from when the kids are a little older and Grace was just little so I will continue to look through them.
I always loved watching your kids, I considered myself pretty lucky to live so close to your family and to be able to come hang with you guys when I needed to get away from school and boys :) I loved sleeping over each week when I worked at the dude ranch because it never failed when morning came Spencer and James would come out and lay by me on the air mattress. I've always thought you two have he most photogenic children so that's one reason I remember wanting to take pictures of them...specifically to remember how cute they are and to be able to show my kids someday who I was so lucky to hang out with and babysit. Watching James always kept me on my toes :) I have two very specific memories of babysitting him. The first is while you were gone one time he was drinking a sippy cup of red Crystal Light. I stepped out of the living room for a minute to help Spencer or Grace. He discovered how much fun it was to swing the cup around and spray red drops all over the carpet. I remember walking into the room in a panic as the carpet looked to be splattered with red rain. I frantically spot cleaned it the best I could. When Laura returned home I was a little nervous to tell her what happened, but when I did I remember she smiled and told me it was no big deal and didn't surprise her at all. What a great example it was to me to not sweat the small stuff and to go with the flow. The other memory I have was watching the kids while Laura took a shower. I was back in a bedroom with the kids and James slipped out. Moments later I heard a banging noise and hurried out into the hall to find James with a table knife banging on the wall to the bathroom. I hurried and stopped him and surveyed the damage. It was obvious there were more dings of the same shape than what he had just done in that short moment. When Laura got out I told her what happened and again she smiled and shook her head. She told me that James had done the same thing a few times before to get her attention while she was in the bathroom.
What fun memories these are, as well as the many nights we would stay up talking after the kids were in bed and I would share all of my crazy boy stories and you would give me great advice and encouragement. You two are such great examples of what it means to be true followers of Christ. Your testimonies reflect the love and faith you have for our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. I can't come close to comprehending how it feels to go through such a devastating trial, but I do know that watching you go through this with such fortitude has been a great testimony to me of why we have the gospel and what this life is all about. I love your family so much. I will be in St. George for work the 18th and 19th of this month, I know this will be a difficult weekend for your family, but if you are around I would love to stop by for a minute to give you a hug.
I hope you have a great weekend.
Love,
Megan
Funny- We had to patch about 150 butter knife dings when we moved out of the apartment! Silly kid! Well that is all for now!
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