The Dating Game

Yeah, dating is a game. Some times you win, some times you lose, and sometimes it is a draw.
I would like to say that the names have been changed to protect the innocent, but if I do that I may forget who I am talking about. So all the names are real and I apologize in advance for any embarrassment I may cause you.

I was invited to the 7th grade school dance by Mark. He brought me a little corsage and his sister took us to the dance and brought us home again. We had a nice time, atleast what little I can remember. After that Mark would come over and we would sit on my front steps to talk. Boring, eh? Well what do you expect, we were in 7th grade. We both moved on to other interests during the summer. So that was a draw.

In high school I liked Tom, a boy from my church, but he only had eyes for another girl. I was still smitten by him and he did all he could to discourage me. He even set me up with another boy. Dennis came to pick me up for this blind date. He was taller than I was and he had reddish blonde hair. He was very nice, we went out to a movie, and on the way home he bought me a box of Dunkin Donuts. That was very unconventional and sweet. After I got home I told my mother about my date and the boy. She said that we had relatives with the same last name. Well after investigation it was established that Dennis and I were 4th cousins, so that ended that. He was a very nice guy though so I introduced him to my friend. They dated and later married. She and He both won.

Then there was the boy, whose name I will not even mention, not to protect him, but my memory....Anyhoo. After our date he drove me home and started to get fresh so I got his head in my arm and rammed it into the passenger side window. I won, He lost. We did not date after that.

And here is an oldy but a goody. Mike liked Loretta, Loretta got made at Mike so at the last minute she agreed to go to the anual church Gold & Green Ball with Ray. I did not have a date to go at all, I know... boo hoo. Mike's mother and My mother talked on the phone and set up this last minute date for me to go with Mike. I had to borrow a dress from a friend of mine and we did my hair all fancy-like. Mike picked me up and took me to a restaurant for dinner before the dance. He kept staring at me like he was seeing me for the very first time. We had a nice meal and then we went to the dance. Everyone there oohed and ahhed over me. I felt like a princess. Mike and I danced and people commented on how nice we danced. At this point the story of the ugly duckling should be entering your mind.....Well, Mike put on a good show and smiled and such. Loretta got jealous and she and Mike made up. Ray and I danced, then other boys and I danced. I had a really good time. Mike and I were just friends, so I knew this would not go anywhere, And as I said I was gaga over Tom. So He won, I won.

Tom never did see me as a love interest. We went out finally the night before he left for the MTC. We went to a movie. It was very clear that we were just good friends and I was okay with that. I figured that if he came home after his mission and had an interest... well, we would just have to wait and see. But that opportunity never came. He died on his mission. A heater malfunction and carbon monoxide. His funeral was a good missionary experience and his father later joined the church.

I see that I am getting very long here so I will try to wrap this up. Let me skip to Sam.

He and I both worked at Methodist Hospital. I was a CNA in Peds and he worked in the engineering department. One day I just happened to go through his dept. on my way out to my car because the lot that I usually parked in was so full so I had to park out back. I noticed this really cute boy. (he worked days, I worked nights)

So from then on I purposely parked out back and stopped at the candy machine on my way out to hopefully get another look at this guy. ( hence my addiction to candy ) Then I found out that he ate breakfast in the hospital cafeteria before work, so I started to eat in the cafeteria before going home. Well he noticed me and sat down at my table. Luckily I was sitting with a nurse that he knew. So he felt he could do that. Well one thing lead to another and we started dating. It really is a nice love story but space is limited so I will just tell you one endearing moment.

We were at his rooming house putting a puzzle together on the floor. We had our shoes off. All of a sudden he grabs one of my shoes and sniffs it. I was horrified. I mean, whose feet smell good? I asked him why he did that. His answer was, "I don't know". I thought that would be the end of him, but Sam asked me out again and again. He even took me out when I had a broken nose. Imagine two big black eyes and a cast taped criss-cross on my face. What a guy.
So I won.

Well by now you should see how this game goes. You do your best, cut your losses, learn from your mistakes, and hope that you will find that love of your life. I did.

Pride goeth before....

Did you say "a fall". Well then you would be wrong. It is "pride goeth before destruction".

There were 4 of us watching a game show and this was the quote. We all could not believe how wrong we were. Larry looked it up and found the scripture. Yep, we were definitely wrong.

So we used that a few times as a running gag. On our last day in Hawaii we played a card game named Hearts. I had the queen of spades and all the High hearts. During the game I got several hearts and I thought I would Shoot the Moon. So I played it real coy and "bemoaned" all the hearts I received. Then I played the queen, knowing that I would get that hand. Then I played the last 5 rounds gaining all the hearts. When we finished I laughed because I thought I "stuck" them all with 26 points each. I felt so proud being all coy and everything. Then Pat says, " Larry, Didn't I give you a heart on the second round?" I was so surprised and said, "Oh, are you kidding?" Sure enough, Larry had a heart. Bummer! So then I said the quote, "pride goeth before...." We all laughed. Talk about eating humble pie...

Well, on the next round, by pure luck I got the queen and all the hearts. Since it was by dumb luck I did not have much enthusiasm for it. I felt so deflated. No delight in the winning. Hmmmm. Maybe pride doth goeth before destruction.

Anyway, we laughed and had a wonderful time even just playing games.

Moral of the story: Never too old to learn.

finally made it to Hawaii

Our friends invited us to spend a week with them in their condo on the Island of Kauai. It is the oldest of the Hawaiian Islands. We arrived on Saturday and shopped for groceries. Did you know that milk can cost up to 11 dollars a gallon? Luckily Costco is there to save the day. (More than Carson City but much better than 11 dollars. )

On sunday we went to church in Lihue. They had Ward Conference and we listened to so many good talks. At the end of the service they had a family that was moving out of their ward come to the stand. Then the congregation sang Aloha O'e to them. The words were printed in the back of the hymnal in Hawaiian. We sang along with them and all four of us had tears in our eyes, even though we did not know the family. We could feel the love that this Ward "family" had for them.

They had a ward photo taken, which they do every year, but we waited that one out. Then we listened to some more good lessons. After that we drove back to the condo for lunch. We played games in the evening.

Monday we went on a bus tour. We enjoyed the sites. "Breathtaking" is the only word I can use to describe all we saw. We had a little boat ride to the fern grotto. That cave will hold 100 people. But we did not go up to that one. We had a serenade then on the boat. And my guy did the hula and wiggled his hips and all.

Wild chickens are everywhere. They were even at the outdoor restaurant where we ate lunch.
It is against the law to kill the chickens, but if one commits suicide...

The rest of the week our friends took us to a lot of sites and shops. We went to a Luau on Tuesday evening. That was very entertaining. The host was a riot.

Our friends took us to some caves and we ventured into those. We walked on the beach.
In the evenings we watched the sunset, swam in the pool, and sat in the hot tub. Jealous?

There are flowers and trees and birds of exotic flavors. All in all I say we had a very enjoyable time. I loved it all. The only thing that would have made it better is if you all were there too, then there would be no reason to come back.

Now we are home unwinding and getting ready to jump back into reality.
Uggghhhhh.

No Missed Opportunities

well, I packed my bags wednesday night and had too much stuff for 2 carry on bags, I remember that Sam always says" just check a bag" so I got out the big bag and decided to check it at the airport. I print my tickets on line and look at the flight time which I am sure said 6:55. I set my alarm for 0400 to give me plenty of time but it went off at 0408 instead. No problem, I have lots of time. I showered and dried off and then remembered that I wanted to shave my legs, so back in the shower. I dressed and wanted to take some Aleve before I left the house, so I took a few moments with that. Then I loaded the car and started to drive off when I remembered my cell phone, so back in the garage and house to retrieve that. Then I thought about having to pay to check a bag at the airport so I head off to the bank's drive-through. Got my money and headed off for the airport. I drove 65 mph forgetting that there is a space when you can drive 70 mph. I think about the pending events of the day and several tears fall from my eyes. I know I will miss the opportunity to say good bye one more time to Mary Lenore and will miss helping Ruth and Derek get through the day and will miss helping to dress Mary, well you get it... All the missed opportunities. I get to the airport and take a few minutes to find a Close parking spot. Picked one not close enough to suit me, but not as far as the other openings. And then I go to check in. They ask if I am there for the 9 am flight, I say that I am there for the 6:55 flight.They tell me there is no 6:55 flight, but that it is a 6:15 flight. They tell me that I am too late to check a bag. That they close the bag check in 45 minutes prior take off . I missed it by 7-8 minutes. So...I am rebooked for friday. I called Sam to change all my connecting flights for Hawaii between the islands.Which he did without any grumbling. I guess all these little comedy of errors were made possible so that I could be with R uth & Derek on thursday. Things like this just show me that Heavenly Father is getting us through this every step of the way. No "Missed Opportunities" here for me. I thank a Loving Heavenly Father for all His Loving Kindess.
Love, MOM

Mary Lenore Coltrin

Very hard times.....

It is so hard to see your child lose a child. What should have been just a totally happy occasion is now shared with extreme sadness. We are still overjoyed that little Mary Lenore has joined the family.

Ruth, if you don't want to read the rest of the blog, now is a good place to stop.

Heart break: I waited in the car with Andrew and Emmy while Ruth went back to see the doctor for results of the ultrasound. As soon as I saw her walk out with the nurse I knew the unthinkable has happened. She did not have to say a word. She sobbed on the nurses shoulder. I knew that if I hugged her I would be totally gone and not be able to function or to drive.

I asked what the next step was and she told me that she was to go home and wait until the scheduled C-section the next day. I asked if Derek knew yet, she said no. Well....That was the next step in my mind. I would want my husband to hold me so tight that he would almost be standing on the other side of me. So I drove to the pizza store. I went in and Derek was talking to an employee giving her directions to a customer. I did not say a word but motioned for him to follow me. He came out to the car and Ruth got out. He hugged her and she sobbed. He asked what was wrong and she told him. They hugged a long time and my heart was just breaking for them. I took Ruth home and Derek came a few minutes after. His mother Marti also came. I knew I could not talk much. So I started keeping busy picking up toys and such. Marti called Brother LaMonica and he in turned called Brother Lay. They would be coming to give them blessings.

After the brethren came they talked a little bit with Ruth and Derek. It was hard because brother LaMonica is hard of hearing and none of us could talk very loud. They gave the blessings and Brother LaMonica stayed for a few minutes more. Ruth kept having contractions and so she called the clinic. They told her to go on into the hospital. Marti would take Andrew and Emmy, and I would try to go to work that night. I picked out a little outfit from a bag of baby shower things. As soon as I picked out the sleeper Marti said, "Oh, that is the one I picked out". I quickly ran to the store to buy a new blanket. I would take these to the hospital that night.

I went home but there was no way I would sleep. I finally layed in bed and drifted off for about 45 minutes. Then I got up and called Derek. I was hoping against hope that a mistake had been made and the baby would be alive. But he told me that Ruth was still in the recovery room. I told him I would be there in a half an hour. I went and found Ruth asleep in her room. The nurse asked me if I wanted to see the baby. I followed her to the nursery. The baby was wrapped in a blanket. At first I just looked at her then the nurse asked me if I wanted to hold the baby. I held her gently and let my heart talk to hers. She was beautiful even though she was changing colors already. I wondered if Ruth would be able to see her baby in this condition. It would be hard and I would some how have to prepare her.

I went back to see Ruth. I told her that the baby was so pretty and that she would have to see past all the discoloration and see her features. She looked so much like Emmy. I was hoping Ruth would find the strength to hold her baby and be comforted.

Then it was time for me to go to work. I told her to just call me and that I would check on her later. I went to Rehab. They all knew that I had asked for the next night off, so the day nurse asked "so how is grandma?" Ofcourse my eyes well up and I have to shake my head. She asked what is wrong and I told her. Well she made the executive decision to call in a replacement. I pulled myself together and did a few nursey things until the nurse arrived. Naomi called to check on things. I asked her to call the others, She said she would. The replacement nurse arrived and I gave her a report and was back with Ruth within the hour. I was so glad I could be there with her.

I watched her sleep and found a nap or two myself. I was awake when she was awake. And shared in her loss. Everyone was so kind to her. She was in such good hands. The Holy Comforter was also with her. She had such a peace to her and she was able to spend time with little Mary.

This thursday they will say good bye to their baby for a while. She will continue to be in our family, in our hearts, and in our lives. She is my 19th grandchild. Perfect in every way. In fact, so perfect that she did not have to live on this earth. She will be waiting for us to join her. We look forward to that day.

So to all of you that send prayers and comfort our way, we say thank you.

To little Mary Lenore I say "Bye, Bye for now. Love, Gram"