Catching up on Tags!

Okay, I am way behind on the tags, so here goes the first one!

10 YEARS AGO:

• I was working as an RN at Mary Bridge Children's Hospital in Tacoma.
• James was a senior in high school.
• All the other kids had left the nest.
• We had no grandkids, yet.
• I was Relief Society President.
  
  
  5 THINGS ON MY TO-D0 LIST:
• 
  1, Buy Audrey and Emily birthday presents.
  2. Get a haircut
  3. Return items to Walmart
  4. Save to DVD my recorded "French In Action" recordings.
  5. Cook dinner
  
  
  5 SNACKS I ENJOY:
• 
  1. Popcorn
  2. Snickers
  3. Cheez-Its
  4. Fishy Crackers
  5. Fudge Bars
  
  
  IF I WERE SUDDENLY A BILLIONAIRE I WOULD:
• 
  1. Move
  2. Take children and grandchildren on a cruise.
  3. Buy an RV (If the gas prices ever come down!)
  4. Travel to Europe with Mark
  5.Donate to Cancer, Diabetes, Ahzheimers and Parkinson's foundations.
  6. Give my children a million dollars each.
  7. Put enough in savings to pay for Mark and I to live in a nice Assisted Living place if the need arises.
  
  
  5 PLACES I HAVE LIVED:
• 
  1. Phoenix, Arizona (also where I was born)
  2. Chilco, Idaho (near Coeur d'Alene)
  3. Moses Lake, Washington
  4. Orem, Utah (while at BYU)
  5. Kent, Washington
  
  
  3 BAD HABITS: (SO MANY TO CHOOSE FROM)
• 
  1, Losing things (keys, PDA, purse, glasses, etc.).
  2. Falling asleep watching the news.
  3. Not finishing projects.
  
  
  5 JOBS I HAVE HAD:
• 
  1. Carhop/Fountain Girl at Burgermaster Drive-In in the University District in Seattle.
  2. File clerk for the UW Biology Department.
  3. Bank Teller at Lincoln Savings and Loan in Seattle.
  4. Keypuncher at the BYU Alumni House and later Assistant to President over gifts and donations. (Keypuncher is an old fashioned data entry where years ago you hole-punched, by machine, info onto cards which were later fed into a computer).
  5. RN at Harborview, Mary Bridge, Pediatric Home Care.
  
  
  
  5 THINGS PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME: (I think my kids know these)
• 
  1. I was robbed when working as a bank teller.
  2. I loved gymnastics, acrobatics when I was younger and got got pretty good at it. (My dad used to complain that when he sent me out to thin beets he would look out the window and see my feet up in the air) .
  3. When I was 8 years old I disked and harrowed our fields with a team of horses.
  4. I majored at BYU in Sociology and then later in life changed to Nursing when I realized how little sociologists and social workers make.
  5. While serving a mission in France, I was pick-pocketed while visiting the Eiffel Tower.

King County Presidential Convention

1. There were 4,274 delegates nominated to be at the convention. Only about a 1,000 showed up.

2. Most of them (I'd guestimate 75%) were empty-nester age. A few younger couples, one of which I saw brought their children for the experience and the rest young college students.

3. I like the band who played before the convention because their music was geared towards us older folks.

4. After I signed in outside the gymnasium of Green River College, I went through the door and they pointed me to a room for credentialing!! What was that? (Iworried that I needed to have credentials of some sort) It is a fancy word for taking roll. We sign in again and get our official delegate tag. We don't want any one from the other parties crashing our convention and messing things up! So here is my tag after it sat in my pocket for a couple of days.

5. The Pledge of Allegiance was said and I might say it was done loud and proud. No need to vote on whether to say it or not.

6. We got to hear from all the candidates who want to win Senate, governor's, Lt. Governor's, House seats, and etc. in the next election. I actually enjoyed what they said and there was a lot of whistling, applause and standing up in support of each candidate.

7. It must have taken over an hour to tally up the delegates and alternate delegates so we could not do any official business until that was done and presented and accepted.

8. First of order of business -- will we accept the late arrivals even though the rules says no. I was surprise that we would consider it -- since it is a rule and there is a time later on that you can officially change the rules. But they were accepted.

9. The platform was presented. New officers were nominated and chosen.

10. Changes to the rules and regulations were beginning to be presented and challenged. That was an intersting procedure. Only two microphones were going so if I wanted to say anything I would have needed to run down the bleachers to a microphone quickly. Remember we are all older folks. I was sitting next to an older gentlemen who needed help getting up and down for the standing votes. Also, often they did not speak into the microphone closely and we could not hear. So those districts sitting on the floor next to the microphones had the advantage.

11. We started to do a delegate vote. First, you do a verbal yea and nay. If it is not clear who won, then you do a stand up count and if that is not clear the chairman of each legislative district must make a count in his district.

12. Since this is a long procedure they started to dismiss by districts those who wanted to get lunch. What? How do you hear the presentations and challenges of rules and policy changes? And how do you vote if you're out of the room getting lunch? Oh well!

13 Somewhere around 1:00pm someone challenged whether we had a quorum to legitimize any votes or changes? What? (A quorum is 20% of the nominated delegates (4,274). So 854 delegates are needed.) So a rather lengthy count was done and there was not enough -- only 700+ was left. Many people leaving for lunch never came back.

14. So we dismissed not being able to change any of the

rules and policies. I've decided I have a lot to learn about these caucuses and conventions. I got some terminology to learn. Mostly, I'd like to nominate James to be on the organizing committee of these conventions. It was a little unorganized and often I couldn't hear what was being said because of all the buzzing and talking going on. Some of the officers were unclear of the rules and were talking among themselves to get it right. It's hard to vote when you didn't quite get it. So here I was saying, "What are we voting on? And what did they say?

I guess I'll have to wait 4 more years to try again.

Sowing the Seeds of Compassion

As I was driving to the temple Friday, the radio was announcing the arrival of the Dalai Lama, exiled spiritual and political leader of Tibet. He was here in Seattle for a "Seeds of Compassion" conference. The goal was to discover and share ways to teach children how to be more compassionate as a way of changing the increasing violence throughout the world. They had many people from the medical, scientific and religious fields giving us the results of their many studies. Now, I'm so grateful to all spiritual, political , social, scientific and religious leaders that are honestly trying to encourage less violence in today's world. But.........

I am always saddened when there is no mention of the one source of all truth, pure love, total compassion and worldwide peace or of His teachings!

They did conclude at this conference that children learn compassion from seeing others and imitating their behaviors.

I was blessed to see so many compassionate actions and works just the last two weeks:

Tommy consoling Blake after Blake tried to take his game away and we told Blake he needed to wait until Tommy was finished, then he would have his turn. Blake broke into tears. Tommy gave him big hug and then let him play with him. Blake, or course, not knowing how to play messed everything up and Tommy resigned to just let Blake play the game himself.

Mary bringing not just one meal over to Maria (who is experiencing a lot of nausea from her pregnancy - which increases when she cooks or even moves), but also bringing over many frozen meals that Maria could store and use whenever. How compassionate!! And I know she is fighting back pain each day!

Little Jenna going to church with Grandma and Grandpa and impressing her teachers when a little girl from her Sunbeam class broke into tears because she wanted her mom. I was told that Jenna immediately got off her chair and walked over to little Ellie and gave her a big hug and sat down beside her. To everyone's surprise, Ellie stopped crying and she and Jenna became friends.

There is no greater place of peace and compassion than the temple. Here is Kristina with her husband, LeGrand Fry. I was most impressed with LeGrand watching how he treated his father, who suffers brain damage related to a bad car accident when the other driver suffering seizures, lost control and crashed his car into the car of LeGrand's father. LeGrand, both on his wedding day and the week before at the temple with his family, was very attentive to his dad. He frequently found his dad, talked to him, patted his shoulder, worried about whether he was getting tired, and generally looked out for him. I was really touched! Great guy, Kristina!!

My mom, never leaving my father's side, and lovingly worrying about if he was too tired, needing to use the restrooms, was hungry, needed a tissue and always noticed when he was trying to say or ask for something.

The Dalai Lama was right, children do learn and are influenced in a positive or negative way by what they see and experience -- from parents, leaders, teachers and from other children.

"...By small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise." Alma 37:6

Visiting My Parents With Uncle Jerry

Last week I picked up Uncle Jerry to go see my dad (his brother) for a visit. Jerry lived with my parents for many years until they could no longer care for him. He has been mentally challenged since he was at least 2 years old. His mother died when he was 14 years old and he moved from one relatives home to another's home several times and earlier in his life, he even spent time in an institution (and not a very good one, either) until he moved in with my mom and dad. It was a very hard decision for my dad to have to find another place for Jerry when it became evident that they no longer could care for him. But, Jerry is in an excellent place with a staff that really seems to like Jerry because he is polite, quiet, very neat and a little bit of a flirt. They have nurses, recreational therapists, and special aides that keep him quite busy. They take them out to a lot of community events. He is also signed up for summer day camp.

Whenever Jerry and my dad see each other, Jerry gets quite emotional -- it starts out kind of as a laugh and then he starts to cry. One of the activities mom, dad and Jerry used to do every evening, when they all lived together, was play a game of Dominoes and have a bowl of ice cream. So whenever they are together, they always play a game. Jerry, despite his mental challenges, seems to do very well with math and numbers. So he is very serious about the game.

Here we all are playing a game of Dominoes at Rose's house. My sister, Sharon, her daughter, Amber and granddaughter, Madison were up from Nevada for a visit and that made it more fun.

My mother won the game with Jerry close behind in second place. Jerry looks a little perturbed that he didn't win and he has won a lot of the games in the past! No kidding!! (Then again, he just might have been a little annoyed that I kept yelling, "Jerry, smile"!)

A quick lunch with the gang, thanks to Rose! See cute little Madison! She kept us all entertained! P.S. Her mommy is expecting another in October. As you can see, dad and Jerry take their meals very seriously! Because dad has Parkinson's and Jerry has had a couple of strokes it takes them both quite awhile to finish their meals.

It is at least a 200 mile trip for me to either pick up Jerry in Gig Harbor and take him to Olympia and back or to pick up my parents and take them to Gig Harbor and back. However, I have enjoyed the experiences. When in the car, Jerry likes to reminisce about the "good old days" in northern Idaho. My parents like the leisurely drive to Gig Harbor and are constantly telling me over and over and over what wonderful kids they have and how they all take care of them so well (Mostly, Rose)!! But they give all 13 of their children credit!! My brother Ed, also takes time to visit them regularly and they love it. Several who live far away do call -- which my mom doesn't always remember (but at the moment it thrills them). My dad counts on me to take care of Jerry now, and when he passes away. Jerry is 16 1/2 years younger than my dad so he could live easily at least another 20 years.

So that is what I did last Tuesday -- or was it last Wednesday? Heck, I'm getting old and can't remember!

Easter Highlights

Thanks to Mary for this picture! I was so busy that Saturday, that I only got a couple of pictures and sadly, mostly of our yard and weeds.

Here are some of our highlights:

1. A fun Easter Egg Hunt at our house, even with the cold and wind.

2. A treasure hunt. Mostly for the older children. However, they had discovered the treasure before I got it hidden. But, I hid it anyway and they had to find it before they could play with it. The hunt itself was the most exciting for the older children and the Elefun was the most exciting for the younger ones.

3. Keeping tabs on David, who at one point was locked in our coat closet and was yelling "Gamma" before we had missed him.

4. Playing "forward rolls" on mat with David, Catie, and Jenna.

5. Trying to beat Blake to the ball before he kicked it away. Man, that kid is fast and determined.

6. Playing Score Four and Hungry, Hungry Hippos with Ethan and Tommy. I never won one game of the Hippos.

7. Watching Jenna try to get the butterflies first in the Elefun game. She's competitive and a little impatient.

8. Seeing Ryan knock the big exercise ball away from Ethan and Tommy. He's getting more competitive all the time.

9. Watching Emily seeing the Easter Eggs across the lawn while missing the ones right under her nose.

10. Catie refusing to go inside to warm up because she loves the outdoors.

11. Sitting in church next to Brian, Mary, Jenna and Catie. Smiling at Jenna when she cried because she wanted, but wasn't invited, to sing a special music number with the other children (who were the older ones).

12. Being embarrassed that our cell phone rang during the Sacrament Meeting.

13. Jenna telling everybody that she got Easter Candy, colored a Jesus picture and went potty as her highlights of her primary class.

14. Audrey being sweet and wanting me to play with her and then being patient when I got interrupted by littles ones needing me elsewhere.

15. The beautiful talks at church.

16. Singing with the choir, "Because He Lives". Two phrases that mean a lot to me from this song are, "My heart is filled with peace amid a world of fear", and "Because He lives I can bear whatever burden may be mine."

17. When around my grandchildren I feel the Spirit so strongly.

Politics and Caucuses

This Saturday morning I had the exciting privilege of being a delegate for our precinct at the legislative district caucus. It was exciting to see how it works. I have attended a caucus only once before and it was such a small precinct that it was held in a home. I never got any further than that caucus. Now being a chosen delegate I get to see so much more of the workings. Our job was to select delegates that will represent us at the state convention in Spokane in May. The goal of the state convention is to eventually narrow the state delegates down to 40 (I think!)that will represent the State of Washington in September at the National Convention.

I am grateful for a country that allows us to choose. However, I am a little concerned that at this caucus we had to choose from a list of people we knew nothing about and would not recognize them if they stood in front of us. Many were nominated before the caucus and their names were just on a list. They were not allowed to even give us 15-30 second introduction of themselves, who they would vote for and what they stood for. Those nominated at the caucus at the last minute were able to do so. You would think that there is the only one presidential candidate being represented and that this caucus is all just a formality. But, not so! Several former presidential candidates have some pretty loyal supporters here and therefore they all plan to vote for their favorite candidate at all the future caucuses right up to and including the national convention. So here I was at this table of 6, asking people who and what they knew about the nominees on the list. Pretty scary way to nominate someone to represent my values for the most powerful governmental job in the world!!

But, I get to be a delegate at the King County Convention where these rules and policies can be addressed and possibly changed.

Great experience!! And I love this country!!

Thanks!

A big thanks to Becca who helps me with my background each month! As soon as I feel better and have time, I plan to have her give me some lessons. I'm always impressed with the different layouts and backgrounds I see when I visit all your blogs!

Grandpa Stringham Growing Up

Mark is the second child and only boy in his family. He was born in Idaho Falls, ID on March 9, 1947 and lived in Ashton on his parents farm his whole childhood life. His parents are James Edward Stringham and Mildred Hannah Hillam Stringham who are the hardest working people, kind, generous and fun to be around.

One of the favorite things for our kids to do when we visited them was to play in the water when Mark's dad flooded the lawn to water it. It was a big shallow swimming pool. Here is Mark and his sisters enjoying the same.

I think he needed to grow more to enjoy his trike.




Mark, his mom,(holding Ilene), Nadene and Lila ready for church. His dad was Bishop for many years and so his mom had to handle all the kids in church herself.



His dad was farmer so Mark knew tractors well. His dad grew a lot of potatoes for seed.





Mark and his sisters would help raise orphaned lambs. They would feed them with a bottle until they were old enough to eat on their own

Mark in his junior high years.

Mark and I at our wedding luncheon with his parents on the left and mine on the right. My kids have only seen my dark brown hair in pictures!

I think Mark's dad would have liked him to grow up and take over the farm, but here is Mark (with his two sisters on the left and me on the right), graduating from BYU with his degree in Computer Science. After graduating, he got a job with Boeing and has worked there for 35 years now.

And that is a brief summary of his life up until we moved to the Seattle area. We lived with my parents in Seattle for two weeks, before we found an apartment just above Southcenter. Shortly, after Brian was born we moved to a small rambler in Renton/Issaquah area where Rebecca, Jason and Maria were born. When Maria was 8 months old we moved to Kent in our current house where James was born. And we have lived here ever since despite my frequent attempts to get him to move.

He is quiet, has a dry sense of humor that our kids really appreciate, and really enjoys when his grandkids want to talk or play with him. He doesn't like to tell me "no" verbally, so he frowns instead and I usually get the message (luckily he doesn't frown often). He can cry very easily at touching stories and when our children were at church with us they would always look over at him to see if he would cry at whatever sad story was being told -- and he always was and still does. He can be very self-disciplined about things that are important to him. And there you have a little synopsis of this great husband of mine.

If you want to know more you will have to ready his life history.

"Happy Birthday" Dear Grandpa!

Tonight we celebratred Mark's birthday. Yesterday was his actual birthday, but one would never know. I think I wished him a "Happy Birthday" once. We ate popcorn and watched BYU TV. He was excited when Maria called him in the morning, but she only asked what time it was (because of daylight savings), then immediately hung up when she realized she was an hour late for church. But, we made up for it tonight. A lot of the family was able to come over for a simple dinner and birthday celebration. 3 year old Jenna was here most of the day and was so excited for grandpa's party so we could all wear party hats. I hadn't bought any, so what was a grandma to do? I immediately went out and bought some.

Jenna was my helper in baking and decorating the cupcakes.

Singing "Happy Birthday" to grandpa.

It can be pretty hectic with so many of the kids and grandkids here at once, and we are always tired when it is over, but these are great memories! We missed Jamie, Ryan and Emily who stayed home because Ryan was sick. And we always miss Jason, Jenn, Jaylee and Jenni who live so far away in Pennsylvania!

Tagged Again!

It's taken me awhile to respond to this tag. Sorry about that. So here goes.

Donuts or bagels? Donuts, But I only eat them for a special treat these days. Diabetes.
Rice or noodles? Depends on the dish! Probably noodles.
Soup or salad? Love salad.
Mexican or Italian? Mexican
Purse or shoes? Shoes
Morning or night? Used to be morning. Now it is night - just relaxing.
Summer or winter? Definitely summer!
Candy or chocolate? Chocolate - it's hard for me to stop once I get started.
Going out or staying in? Love to get out and about.
Laundry or dishes? Dishes.
Skirt or dress? Skirt, I don't have many dresses.
Flip flops or tennis shoes? Actually, I like barefoot the best but between the two, flip flops.
Hot chocolate or chocolate milk? Chocolate milk.
Water or juice? Juice, but I'm trying to train myself to drink more water.
TV shows or movies? Movies. Especially old movies.
Cats or dogs? Definitely dogs - it started when I was a child - my only pets were dogs and horses.
Diet or regular soda? I only drink diet.
Cake or pie? I loves pies the best -- almost any kind.
Hair up or down? With short hair it has to be down.
Mountains or beach? I love to take scenic drives through the mountains but, play on the beach.
Pink or blue? Blue
Drama or comedy? Comedy
Hamburger or hotdog? Mostly hamburgers, unless it is Costco's polish dog.
McDonald's or Burger King? McDonald's - small one with less meat.
Football or baseball? Baseball when it is the Mariners playing.
Epidural or natural? I'm a wimp - epidural.
Carebears or my little ponies? My Little Ponies - have no idea why.
CD or radio? CD - ones that I burn with all my favorites I have purchased. I play them on my computer during the day and in my car while running around.
Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty? Cinderella

Goodness! When I look over these answers, I realize what a boring person I am!

I have been going through all my old pictures, scanning them into my computer and it brought back lots of memories. Was feeling a little melancholy. Also, feeling very blessed! Hence, the slide show below.

Our Children - A Short Trip Down Memory Lane

Memories That Make Us Smile

Anger

I wish I had such exciting lives as you all seem to have. Don't get me wrong -- I'm not unhappy, (In fact I'm pretty content), I just realize when it comes to blogging that I don't have too much to say.

But, here is a quote I came across yesterday that I thought was sweet. I think most of you have heard it before, but it deserves repeating:

"The story is told that reporters were interviewing a man on his birthday. He had reached an advanced age. They asked him how he had done it.

He replied,'When my wife and I were married we determined that if we ever got in a quarrel one of us would leave the house. I attribute my longevity to the fact that I have breathed good fresh air throughout my married life.'"

Just wondering how much healthier and skinnier I would be today if I had done that anytime I was angry instead of slamming cupboard doors!
Hopefully, I will have something fun to post next time!

Grandpa Lee

Last week I took my father in for eye surgery. He is 87 and has Parkinson's. The Parkinson's has disabled him to the point that he walks very slowly with a walker and I'm always afraid that he is going to fall (because he has a history of it). It takes him an hour or longer to eat a meal and also has taken a toll on how quickly he can respond to a question. At the Eye Surgery Center was a sweet young nurse there that seemed to adore Dad. She would ask questions and then give him plenty of time to answer. She teased him and he would smile and give a pretty good tease back. While she was waiting for him to respond, she would say, "I can tell you're really thinking about a good comeback". Dad would grin and after a minute or two he would say something funny. After awhile, they gave him a medication to relax him and make him feel really good just before they took him in for the surgery. He said to me, "Jenny, tell Eric (Maria's husband) that I need to talk to him." "About the house?", I asked. (Eric and Ed are trying to subdivide their property and sell it. ) "What do you want to know", I asked. Dad answered, "Well, Betty and I want to move back home." That shocked me for a quick moment, then I remembered the medication he was on. I told him that he still can't walk without lots of help, neither of them can drive, and they'd be stuck there with no help. "Betty helps me and I help her", he replied. Mom was starting to get a little upset with him and telling him, "We can't do that". Then I looked at him and said, "Dad, I think that medication is really making you feel good, isn't it". He chuckled for a moment and then said, "Yes, it sure is." He never mentioned moving back home again. My mother always stays close by him when he goes to the hospital for anything. I think she is so worried about losing him. She has Alzheimer's and he has been her memory for quite some time. But, the Parkinson's is taking a toll on his memory too.

A few hours after we got my dad home, he needed more pain medication. Rose gave it to him as prescribed. She tried giving him his second dose just before bedtime. He seemed a little sleepy, but it was late. She finally got it in his mouth. But, soon after that she called me and said that Dad was becoming unresponsive and she didn't think he had swallowed his pill. I told her to get the pill out of his mouth, call 24 hour nurse and 911. She couldn't get it out. But, mom immediately took over and she was yelling, "Arthur, Arthur, open your mouth. Give me that pill!" I could hear her quite well on my end of the phone. After what seemed like an eternity to me, Rose told me mom had pryed his mouth open and pulled out the pill. When the ambulance arrived they, of course, took him immediately to St. Petersburg Hospital in Olympia where they gave him Narcan to reverse the effects. They didn't get home until 4:30 AM and Rose teaches early morning Seminary. So her husband, John, took the class. I went to Olympia the next morning so Rose could study for and take some exams. She is also taking 3 classes at the community college there. She amazes me! And she is reluctant to ask for much help, so I almost have to almost force my help on her.

For the most part, my parents are very agreeable and appreciative in their aging years. My sister Rose, handles them great. She can be firm and yet jokes around with them a lot. I'm very appreciative of all she does for them.

Tagged!

Okay, this is my first time at this. Sorry if it is a little plain. I'll need someone's help to learn to make this blog attractive.

Here goes:

1. How long have you been married? 35 1/2 years.

2. How long did you date? Our first date was in November and we were married the next April. (What can I say -- when it is right, it is right!)

3. How old is he? 61 years old in March.

4. Who eats more? I can probably eat more at one time. But overall, I think we eat about the same. Hence, we weigh close to the same.

5. Who said, "I Love You", first? I really can't remember, but I'm guessing he did since he is more romantic than I! (i.e. flowers, love notes, candy, etc.)

6. Who is taller? Mark, by about 5 inches.

7. Who sings better? I do! I think I was the first to tell him he sings off key, and he was really surprised. However, he does sing with gusto! And that makes me smile.

8. Who is smarter? Depends! He is in politics, history, computer and math. I ask him as many questions about these subjects as I google. He may disagree, but I am better at test-taking, medical stuff, science, teaching and cultural things. We are about the same in gospel knowledge, but in different ways.

9. Who does the laundry? Over the years, I have definitely done more laundry. However, he helped enormously when I was getting my nursing degree and still doesn't hesitate to put in a load, when needed. And he never complains! I just find a load in the dryer the next day! And if I am folding them in his presence, he helps.

10. Who does the dishes? In the evening, he generally helps. And again, he helps other times when needed. And he always helps with the dishes when we have a big family dinner at our house.

11. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? It depends! Mark usually tries to take the middle of the bed.

12. Who pays the bills? Me!

13. Who mows the lawn? It was mostly me or our children for a long time. Now, he generally does, but when he is working a lot, I do it. Actually, I like mowing the lawn! And Mark has to deal with hay fever.

14. Who cooks dinner? Mostly, me. However, he is good at getting dinner, when needed. (mostly, soup, chili or PB sandwich)

15. Who is more stubborn? That is an easy one! He wins in the stubborn department, but luckily, not about very many things. I'm the pouty one!

16. Who kissed who first? He kissed me first, I thought he would be too shy, so I just waited. However, it didn't take him that long to get around to it.

17. Who asked who out? Our first date was a blind date. I worked with his roommate, Bill. I had just broken up with another guy and had nothing to do that weekend. Bill (who was dating a friend of mine) asked if I wanted to go with him and one of his roommates. Bill and I talked the whole time at the game and Mark was quiet and polite. We did talk after we dropped Bill off at the apartment. I immediately liked him and it was getting close to Preference Ball at BYU, so I preferred him.

18. Who proposed? Mark! I was totally surprised that he did it so soon. I knew I would marry him and I thought that, he being shy, would take a long time to get around to it. I was hoping maybe some time around June, when he graduated. However, he asked me in February. He immediately wanted to call my dad and ask for my hand, so imagine his surprise when I told him I had not even mentioned him to my parents. He was brave, but it was a very uncomfortable moment when he talked to my dad! My dad, said something to the effect that he trusted my judgement, but that they would like to meet him.

19. Who has more friends? I do. But, everyone who really knows Mark likes him. I can't say the same for me.

20. Who has more siblings? I do. He has 3 sisters. I have 7 brothers and 5 sisters.

21. Who am I tagging? Jenn. I think everyone else whose blogs I read have been tagged and have responded. If not, I tag those who haven't yet been tagged.