Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Family Memories
My mom recently paid for all of our home videos to be switched over to DVDs. Since today was Father's Day, I suggested we pull out a DVD and check out some fun family memories caught on film.
The first thing on this DVD was footage of just us 8 kids preparing a Christmas gift for our parents. The older kids took turns filming us as we cleaned the basement and made a banner for Mom and Dad. We acted out our traditional Christmas Eve Nativity Scene and reading of The Night Before Christmas, which I'm assuming was on the film because we were trying to show our parents that we really could be serious (instead of laughing and ruining the attempted reverence like usual on Christmas Eve). Though I'm not sure we were successful at being reverent as we acted out the scriptures, it was fun to see how hard we tried to please Mom and Dad. That year I played the role of a sheep, since I was only about 4 and couldn't do much else. I got my "BAAA!" part down quite well, if I do say so myself. As I watched and listened I was struck not only by the hideous clothing and hair styles we had in the early 90s or the surprisingly Texan accents that came out of our mouths, but by the fun we had as siblings. I was touched to see how my oldest siblings helped me be a good lamb and aided my efforts in being a part of the Yuletide traditions by whispering a stanza in my ear so I could "read" the Christmas poem right along with everyone else. I was amazed at how well we 8 children could sing a carol together despite the lack of parental guidance. I was tickled to see us hold up the banner at the end of the movie, with my eyes barely showing underneath, Rebecca's eyes barely over the top, and everyone else holding the banner at his/her waist, and yell out, "Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad! We love you!"
Later on the home video compilation DVD, there was footage of a family vacation we took to Aspen Grove (a BYU-owned family summer camp type thing). I loved seeing Mom's frizzy hair, our hideous summer wardrobes (yikes on the shorts!), and the flat-billed "Aspen Grove" hat that Spencer insisted on wearing throughout most of the footage from that week. After we fast-forwarded through some parts of the movie (sorry, but watching someone put on a couple of harnesses for about 5 straight minutes is not captivating) it was interesting to see many of my siblings successfully complete a high ropes course. I was overjoyed to discover that, since Mom had a birthday that week, the Aspen Grove birthday song in its entirety was on our very own home video. Miniature golfing with the family was enjoyable, especially when Spencer bragged at one hole only to take about 15 shots at the next and when Mom had to teach Rebecca the correct way to hold a golf club because she just didn't know any better. At the end of an obviously long day when my 5-year old body was exhausted and grumpy while the rest of the family was having fun at a family dance, I was touched to see Mom being so patient and Eric being the coolest big brother around when he put me on his shoulders and danced with another sister at the same time. I laughed when each of our age groups got up on stage at the end of the week and did our chant and a song for all of the audience to hear. It also brought back a flood of memories when, at the end of the video, Dad walked through the cabin and filmed everyone as he tried to wake them up. People look funny after a night of deep sleep, and somehow nobody seemed to be pleased to be caught on film with the bright lights on so early in the morning!
Another part of the DVD included footage that Dad took when he and Mom went with Mom's siblings and parents to Alaska. Between hurrying through the extremely long shots of wildlife and glaciers, I saw my younger looking parents/grandparents/aunts and uncles and just had to smile.
Though I loved all of the aforementioned family memories, in honor of Father's Day I will share some details about Dad that I picked up on in this DVD. As I watched his children try to act out the Christmas Eve traditional activities, I appreciated even more his willingness to film us every year. No offense to my siblings who filmed, but when he wasn't there filming I missed Dad's usual commentary (including the date and what we were doing) and traditional zoom-in on the Christmas tree with the lights on . Though I didn't listen to all of it, as I watched a lengthy piano recital I appreciated the fact that all through my life my dad supported me in everything, even though he didn't have the privilege of speeding up time like I did as I watched the past. As I watched us have the time of our lives at Aspen Grove, I became even more grateful for our annual summer family vacations that Dad planned. When I watched the corny reinactments of scripture stories that the youth in our ward presented with Dad's voice as narrator, I remembered how Dad was always involved in the ward and how he was so admired by everyone around him. As the DVD allowed me to continue the journey on through Alaska I was reminded of the deep love that my dad has for my mother, because somehow the camera usually ended up on her. I knew as the camera zoomed in on my mother and as she smiled right back at the man behind the camera that I have been blessed with some of the greatest parents out there. And for the short moments that my own father was caught on camera, I am grateful beyond words. Though it felt like he was only visible for less than two minutes of the entire DVD, I got to be reminded of what he looked like when I was young. Though not all of the DVD had the greatest sound quality (or any sound at all), I did get to hear my daddy's voice again, and it made me so grateful that my dad seemed to always be caught up with the latest technology.
I wanted to use this post to express my gratitude for family memories and a Sunday evening spent reliving them via the television. Thank you, Dad, for all that I learned and still learn from you. Thank you, family, for being the loving, supporting, amazing people that you are. Despite my focus on Dad for this post, I know that all of my family members have played important roles in my life and my happy memories.
In parting, I will leave you with one of my favorite pictures. This picture is of me on my baptism day, right before my dad baptized me as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Please ignore the dumb tilted foot thing I have going on. :D
The first thing on this DVD was footage of just us 8 kids preparing a Christmas gift for our parents. The older kids took turns filming us as we cleaned the basement and made a banner for Mom and Dad. We acted out our traditional Christmas Eve Nativity Scene and reading of The Night Before Christmas, which I'm assuming was on the film because we were trying to show our parents that we really could be serious (instead of laughing and ruining the attempted reverence like usual on Christmas Eve). Though I'm not sure we were successful at being reverent as we acted out the scriptures, it was fun to see how hard we tried to please Mom and Dad. That year I played the role of a sheep, since I was only about 4 and couldn't do much else. I got my "BAAA!" part down quite well, if I do say so myself. As I watched and listened I was struck not only by the hideous clothing and hair styles we had in the early 90s or the surprisingly Texan accents that came out of our mouths, but by the fun we had as siblings. I was touched to see how my oldest siblings helped me be a good lamb and aided my efforts in being a part of the Yuletide traditions by whispering a stanza in my ear so I could "read" the Christmas poem right along with everyone else. I was amazed at how well we 8 children could sing a carol together despite the lack of parental guidance. I was tickled to see us hold up the banner at the end of the movie, with my eyes barely showing underneath, Rebecca's eyes barely over the top, and everyone else holding the banner at his/her waist, and yell out, "Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad! We love you!"
Later on the home video compilation DVD, there was footage of a family vacation we took to Aspen Grove (a BYU-owned family summer camp type thing). I loved seeing Mom's frizzy hair, our hideous summer wardrobes (yikes on the shorts!), and the flat-billed "Aspen Grove" hat that Spencer insisted on wearing throughout most of the footage from that week. After we fast-forwarded through some parts of the movie (sorry, but watching someone put on a couple of harnesses for about 5 straight minutes is not captivating) it was interesting to see many of my siblings successfully complete a high ropes course. I was overjoyed to discover that, since Mom had a birthday that week, the Aspen Grove birthday song in its entirety was on our very own home video. Miniature golfing with the family was enjoyable, especially when Spencer bragged at one hole only to take about 15 shots at the next and when Mom had to teach Rebecca the correct way to hold a golf club because she just didn't know any better. At the end of an obviously long day when my 5-year old body was exhausted and grumpy while the rest of the family was having fun at a family dance, I was touched to see Mom being so patient and Eric being the coolest big brother around when he put me on his shoulders and danced with another sister at the same time. I laughed when each of our age groups got up on stage at the end of the week and did our chant and a song for all of the audience to hear. It also brought back a flood of memories when, at the end of the video, Dad walked through the cabin and filmed everyone as he tried to wake them up. People look funny after a night of deep sleep, and somehow nobody seemed to be pleased to be caught on film with the bright lights on so early in the morning!
Another part of the DVD included footage that Dad took when he and Mom went with Mom's siblings and parents to Alaska. Between hurrying through the extremely long shots of wildlife and glaciers, I saw my younger looking parents/grandparents/aunts and uncles and just had to smile.
Though I loved all of the aforementioned family memories, in honor of Father's Day I will share some details about Dad that I picked up on in this DVD. As I watched his children try to act out the Christmas Eve traditional activities, I appreciated even more his willingness to film us every year. No offense to my siblings who filmed, but when he wasn't there filming I missed Dad's usual commentary (including the date and what we were doing) and traditional zoom-in on the Christmas tree with the lights on . Though I didn't listen to all of it, as I watched a lengthy piano recital I appreciated the fact that all through my life my dad supported me in everything, even though he didn't have the privilege of speeding up time like I did as I watched the past. As I watched us have the time of our lives at Aspen Grove, I became even more grateful for our annual summer family vacations that Dad planned. When I watched the corny reinactments of scripture stories that the youth in our ward presented with Dad's voice as narrator, I remembered how Dad was always involved in the ward and how he was so admired by everyone around him. As the DVD allowed me to continue the journey on through Alaska I was reminded of the deep love that my dad has for my mother, because somehow the camera usually ended up on her. I knew as the camera zoomed in on my mother and as she smiled right back at the man behind the camera that I have been blessed with some of the greatest parents out there. And for the short moments that my own father was caught on camera, I am grateful beyond words. Though it felt like he was only visible for less than two minutes of the entire DVD, I got to be reminded of what he looked like when I was young. Though not all of the DVD had the greatest sound quality (or any sound at all), I did get to hear my daddy's voice again, and it made me so grateful that my dad seemed to always be caught up with the latest technology.
I wanted to use this post to express my gratitude for family memories and a Sunday evening spent reliving them via the television. Thank you, Dad, for all that I learned and still learn from you. Thank you, family, for being the loving, supporting, amazing people that you are. Despite my focus on Dad for this post, I know that all of my family members have played important roles in my life and my happy memories.
In parting, I will leave you with one of my favorite pictures. This picture is of me on my baptism day, right before my dad baptized me as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Please ignore the dumb tilted foot thing I have going on. :D
Friday, June 12, 2009
Something I Love (4)
Something I love is a fun photo editing program and great pictures to work with. I'm sure I wasted too much time just doing these four pictures, but it was so much fun!
I love this picture because it shows one of the beautiful West Texas sunsets. Even though I often mention boredom, I really am enjoying my summer at home and I wouldn't have it any other way.
I love this picture because it is so fun and it brings many happy memories. When I see this picture, I think of Brita (my lovely friend who took the picture). I also think of my other friends who participated in the food fight, which in turn leads me to think about all of my 3200 girls and all of my freshman year friends. I can't even describe how much I loved my first year at college, and I know that most of that love came about because of these fabulous people. This picture also gets me excited for the future, because I know that life can be as exciting as I make it. Though I won't be able to regularly participate in a food fight, I know I can and will plan other fun escapades with the great people that have and will become the dearest of friends. Isn't it interesting that this one picture reminds me of so many things?
I love this collage of pictures because I feel it captures the pure beauty of nature. We are so blessed to be able to live on this earth with such beautiful creations surrounding us!These lovely photos were taken by other talented people and found by me online.
I love this photo for a plethora of reasons. First of all, I love this picture from a photographic and artistic point of view. I believe Kiely did a fabulous job capturing our family! Next, though this picture is not even close to being all of my immediate family (a dad, some in-laws, and some nieces and nephews are missing), it has all of the original Blake family on this side of the veil. I love these people (plus the aforementioned people not pictured here) so much I can't even put it into words, so naturally I love the photograph. Finally, I love this particular version of the photo because it has the truth that "families are forever" directly on it. I am amazed at the love that our Heavenly Father has for us, and in my opinion this picture captures just a tiny portion of the love that He has specifically for me. I guess I love this picture so much because it is practically a portion of my testimony in visual form.Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Ketchup, but no Mustard
I like Ketchup, but mustard is just gross. Mustard stinks and the taste is terrible. On hot dogs, I only ever put ketchup. Hamburgers with mustard are ruined. Ketchup is even cool enough to have an alternate spelling (catsup). That's why today I decided to make a KETCHUP post.
This is the family portrait after Mom opened her mission call. I have the Steeles and the Merkleys in my hands, and Mom has the Utah people in her hand. Cool, eh?
This is one of the "treasures" I found when I cleaned out my room a little bit. This, my friends, is a hat that I was awarded in sixth grade when I was a GEM Scholar (I made all A's that year at Gifted Education Midland, the school I went to two days out of the week). Who gives out a baseball hat with the award printed on it?! Dumb. Plus also, now some kid who purchases this hat at Good Will can wear it and pretend he's smart, even though he's obviously not if he bought the hat in the first place.
Another treasure, 'cept I did some work on this one. I started this latch hook when I was probably 8 or 9. Along with almost every other crafty project I've started in my life, I never finished it. So, to have the satisfaction of a completed project (as well as to fill time during my boring summer), I finished this latch hook and took a picture of it. Then I promptly put it in the box to give away. I would never keep a latch hook, especially one of a dog!
Despite my recurring bouts of boredom, Thelma seems to be enjoying it here in Midland. She found a little friend (emphasis on little) in my room. Currently the two are planning fun escapades. I'm sure they will allow me to photograph some of their adventures....
This is the family portrait after Mom opened her mission call. I have the Steeles and the Merkleys in my hands, and Mom has the Utah people in her hand. Cool, eh?
This is one of the "treasures" I found when I cleaned out my room a little bit. This, my friends, is a hat that I was awarded in sixth grade when I was a GEM Scholar (I made all A's that year at Gifted Education Midland, the school I went to two days out of the week). Who gives out a baseball hat with the award printed on it?! Dumb. Plus also, now some kid who purchases this hat at Good Will can wear it and pretend he's smart, even though he's obviously not if he bought the hat in the first place.
Another treasure, 'cept I did some work on this one. I started this latch hook when I was probably 8 or 9. Along with almost every other crafty project I've started in my life, I never finished it. So, to have the satisfaction of a completed project (as well as to fill time during my boring summer), I finished this latch hook and took a picture of it. Then I promptly put it in the box to give away. I would never keep a latch hook, especially one of a dog!
Despite my recurring bouts of boredom, Thelma seems to be enjoying it here in Midland. She found a little friend (emphasis on little) in my room. Currently the two are planning fun escapades. I'm sure they will allow me to photograph some of their adventures....
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