Feeling Grateful

Today I am feeling very grateful for my Heavenly Father and his provisions. I feel grateful for the knowledge that I have that families are not "Til death do us part" but go on for the rest of time. I am grateful for the knowledge that some distant day I will be able to touch, feel, hold and kiss my daughter. I am grateful for a loving a just God that hears and answers prayers, forgives our sins (And loves us despite them) and heals our broken hearts and makes us whole again.

I am grateful for the chance that I have to be a mother, to ALL of my children.

I am grateful for the friends that I have.

I am sad today. I am sad for my friend and her loss. I am sad that her loss makes my own scarred heart ache for my own daughter. I am sad that my friend is already mourning a daughter and is now mourning a son. How does one recover from something like this? How do you pick up the pieces and move on?

"The LORD replied, my precious, precious child, I Love you and I would never leave you! During your times of trial and suffering when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."

Footprints In The Sand
Carolyn Carty 1963

I know this is true. I KNOW it! I know because only by Him carrying me have I been able to make it from there, to here. I know I could never have made this journey on my own, and I know also because my faith is far deeper in times of trial, when He is closest. I know He is beside me, I feel His presence and I glory in it. Just as I know he is beside my friend, holding her up, holding her together.

My love, thoughts, and prayers are with the Sanders Family.

This weekend we gathered together to say goodbye to my Grandpa. The resounding theme throughout the service was that he was a great and honorable man. Honest in his dealings, steadfast in his loyalty and dedicated in his service. He was admired by all who knew him because he was a truly GOOD man. They just don't come any better than him.


There was a display of memorabilia. A model of the plane he flew in, his service photo, an ID photo taken of him in the POW camp, pictures of him with his siblings, wife and children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. He really did love the little kids, he loved to tease and tickle them and when he was sick in the hospital he got upset when he heard we were coming because he didn't have any candy for the little kids. My children are so heartbroken...we all are.


This is the casket spray, and this word sums up my grandparents relationship nicely. They truly were sweethearts. Soul mates.



My Grandpa was buried with full military honors. They had a flag ceremony, a 21 gun salute, and my Uncle Randy was able to present my Grandmother with the flag from Grandpa's casket. He could barely say the words through the tears and then he had to play Taps as well. It was beautiful and my cousin Tony (Randy's son) played the echo. Such a hauntingly beautiful melody.


These emblems were on the four corners of the casket and at the end of the service were removed and presented to the children.


These are my Grandparent's children from left to right
Randy, Jennifer, Steven, Nedra, Corey, Lori, and Kerry (My dad)


Goodbye Grandpa, I love you. May your reunions in heaven be joyful, and may your earthly body rest in peace.

Grandpa's Obituary

Clyde Kerry Yeates
Clyde Kerry Yeates 1924 ~ 2008 Clyde Kerry Yeates, 83, passed away peacefully in Salt Lake City, on February 5, 2008, surrounded by his wife and children.Clyde was born May 7, 1924 to Alma and Grace King Yeates in Nibley, Utah. He was the fifth of six children. Clyde married MarGene Nielsen of Hyrum on July 27, 1945 in the Logan LDS Temple. He attended Cache County Schools and graduated from Utah State Agricultural College with a degree in Accounting. Clyde served his country as a radio gunner with the 392nd Bombardment Group, United States 8th Air Force. His aircraft was lost over France in August of 1944. He was one of three survivors. He spent nine months as a prisoner of war in Germany. Clyde worked as an accountant in Idaho and Utah before opening his own CPA firm in Logan, Utah where he practiced until his retirement. Clyde is survived by his high school sweetheart and loving wife of 63 years, MarGene, one brother, Sidney C. Yeates (Ardene), and children Kerry D. (Marilynn), Randall M. (Dottie), Nedra Jo Pace (Dee), Lori Ann Schaub (James), Cory C. (Rita), Steven K. (Cindy), and a foster daughter, Jennifer Shotgunn. The lights of his life were his 26 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren all of whom adored him. Clyde was preceded in death by his parents, brothers, Ballard and Carlos and sisters Evelyn and Phyllis. Funeral services will be held Sat. February 9, at 11 a.m. at the Hyrum 2nd and 15th Ward Chapel, 455 E. 100 S., Hyrum, Utah, with a preceding viewing from 9:30-10:30 a.m. There will be a Fri. evening viewing at Nelson Funeral Home, 162 E. 400 N., Logan, Utah, from 6-8 p.m. Interment will be at the Hyrum City Cemetery following the services with military honors provided by South Cache Post 47 of the American Legion. Condolences may be extended to the family at www.nelsonfuneralhome.com
Published in the Salt Lake Tribune on 2/7/2008.

My first MeMe

I so desperately need to blog about something happy today! I feel like I have been grieving for weeks now. I think we all started grieving when grandpa was taken to the hospital three weeks ago, I think I knew then that this was goodbye, I have been crying for three weeks now, how do I have any tears left?

I feel like I need to talk about something happy, but at the same time, I feel overwhelming guilt that I could even dare to think a happy thought when my grandpa's viewing is tomorrow night and his funeral the next day.

The school called today and asked me to sub. I thought about it briefly, going in to work and taking my mind off of my own life for a moment, but I just couldn't do it. I did accept a job for Monday though. The boys will be back to school on Monday and I am so relieved. They have been so bored at home, they can't go outside because there is so much snow and it is biter cold.

Kim called today, they are asking the oldest great grandchild from each family to sing at the funeral they asked me if PK could sing. #1 PK is a twin, he may have been born first (By a whoppin 2 minutes), but he is NOT older than PF, they are the same age! #2 The chances of PK actually standing in front of a room full of people is pretty much not EVER going to happen, the child gets stage fright in front of the mirror. So they did make an exception and said both of the twins could sing. PF wants to, PK doesn't, I am not going to force the issue. The bad news is that K REALLY wants to, but they said Nope, sorry. Poor kid, he feels like he is always being left behind by the twins. It has been almost a year now and he still cries every week when the twins go to scouts and he is stuck at home with me. I try to make it fun for him, we play games, or watch cartoons etc, but he still feels like he is missing out.


Anyway... on with my very first MeMe

YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME (grandfather/grandmother on your father's side, your favorite sweet/lolly):MarGene Twix Hmmmmmm not sure about that one LOL

YOUR FLY GIRL/GUY NAME (first initial of first name followed by "izzle", first two or three letters of your last name followed by "dizzle"): Jizzle Bridizzle...what is a "fly-girl," and when am I supposed to use this name?


YOUR DETECTIVE NAME (favorite color, favorite animal): UGH I don't really have a favorite animal. So for the sake of this excercise we will just say Pink Polar Bear. I have a special affinity with the Polar Bears at our local zoo because she had twins the same year I did. Or I could always say Pink Beluga Whale since that is my favorite thing to go see at Sea World. I could sit there all day and watch them swim, they are so graceful and beautiful, and their blubber jiggles just like mine

YOUR STAR WARS NAME (first 3 letters of your name- last 3 letters of mother's maiden name, first 3 letters of your pet's name repeated twice): Briray SilSil Wow, that's a tongue twister


SUPERHERO NAME ("The", your favorite color, the automobile you drive): The Pink Venture, or maybe the Rose Venture, The blushing Venture, (Oh yikes, I looked Pink up in the thesaurus after I ran out of synonyms for Pink and one of the words they had listed was flesh...making my superhero name "The Flesh Venture" which sounds more like a porn star than a super hero!) I think I like "The Blushing Venture" the best. It ha a certain innocent strength about it. Blushing and timid, but with the courage to venture forth. yeah, I like that.

Saying Goodbye

I had the choice opportunity to say goodbye to my grandpa yesterday afternoon.

He had slipped into a coma the night before and my grandma had asked that only her children come to the hospital. They were able to spend 12 hours with him before my grandma allowed the grandchildren to come up and say goodbye. The doctors gave him about 72 hours.

I was able to hug and kiss him goodbye, tell him how much I loved him, and how grateful I was for his example, and our shared experiences. I told him I was so very grateful that he was MY grandpa and that if given the chance I couldn't possibly choose a better grandpa than him and my maternal grandpa who died about eight years ago.

He died at about 1:20 AM February 5, 2007. His passing was peaceful, just a quiet slowing of breath. I was so grateful to hear that because he had been struggling for so long to breathe past all the fluid in his lungs, I am glad it was peaceful, it eases my heart to know he didn't struggle at the end.

I will miss him for the rest of my life and look forward to meeting him again in the afterlife.

I am comforted by the thought that my daughter now has both of her great-grandfathers. In my prayers I asked her to go find him and welcome him home.

Continued prayers for my grandmother and the family are much appreciated.

More Prayers Please

Please keep my grandparents in your prayers.

We are taking our little boys up to the hospital today to say goodbye. The doctors say it is a matter of days now. His organs are shutting down and his lungs are filling with fluid.

Please keep my grandpa in your prayers, he is so scared. Pray that he will have peace and comfort in his heart.

Please pray for my grandma to have the strength to get through this. He is the love of her life, the second half of her whole. I don't know how she is still standing, she doesn't leave his side, she barely eats, she isn't sleeping. I worry for her health and her well being.

Please pray for my dad and his siblings.

My grandpa is one of the greatest men I know. He has an amazing faith. I am going to miss him so much.