The Beginning

Well... we'll see if I can keep up with this! I'm excited for the opportunity to keep a journal that family and friends are welcome to peek in on.


I guess I'll just start off with the basics. My first child Morgan, was born to me on August 29th, 1984. This beautiful surprise changed my life and I will eternally be grateful for the change in the direction of my life that it took me. Morgan was an example to me from the second she was born and continues to set an example each day she lives ... I'm sure she has a soul that is much older and wiser than mine! I married David on June 6th 1987. We have had a marriage with all of the ups and downs that most of us have had... but 21 years later we're still hanging in there. The next little "bundle of joy" that we were surprised with was our feisty little Lauren. She came into this world on January 17, 1988 with fire and continues to live her life full of .... fire! As much as I love the independence and oomph and humor that her personality has... I'm also beginning to see some softness and maturity settle in... and it's an incredible and beautiful metamorphosis to witness! On September 11, 1989 our one and only little man came to us. He is funny, impulsive, loyal, loving, a free spirit, sensitive (most of the time), talented, intelligent and very handsome. I am so grateful for his patience in living in a house of hormones and for the tenderness he shows me. He will certainly make a wonderful husband... that is very aware of female needs... when he gets through this tumultuous time in his life. I guess there are those of us that feel the need to make our own mistakes and "taste" life before we make our decisions rather than making the decisions first. He is definately a kindred spirit to his mother! I suffered several miscarriages between Jordan and our next child... so when Breanne was born to us we were ecstatic! She was born on December 10th 1992 quickly and without a lot of pain for me. I thought it was because of the losses we had suffered that we felt so happy... it turns out it was because of her sweet, yet tough personality. She was my first baby that didn't cry much, she was my first baby to sleep through the night from 3 weeks on, and she was my first baby that seemed truly "content" from the minute she arrived. To this day she seems to be able to bounce back from trials with a smile on her face and a forgiving heart. Our beautiful and loveable "Kammy T" was born to us on November 16th, 1994. Little Kamrynn was gifted with the most beautiful big brown eyes and head full of curly hair. She has lived her life thus far in complete obedience both to her parents and to the gospel. She is trusting and forgiving and kind. I feel sad for her lack of confidence and want to help her see what a gift she is... but I think it's going to take experience for her to finally discover that. Our next blessing came to us on September 12th, 1996... only 10 hours after her cousin (who was able to be there at her birth). Madison was another gentle and sweet baby. We discovered early on that she had a lot of fears and had a tender heart that is hurt easily. She is quiet and it would horrify her to know that she had ever caused difficulties for anyone (she really hasn't though). She has taken on the role of the child that would rather glide through life unnoticed than to ever make waves. Some day I would like to see her laugh with sheer joy... or act silly... or defend herself without fear. She has an incredible sense of humor and for some reason... with all of her fears... is not the slightest bit afraid to be on a stage performing. I think she's going to be our little star! The next baby we had turned out to be a miracle baby. Arryn was born on November 17, 1998... against all odds. When I was 14 weeks pregnant with her I was in a head on car accident (with 5 of the other children) and critically injured. They just knew the baby wouldn't make it and ended up life flighting me to LDS hospital. They did daily ultrasounds to watch her progression and told me that until we had a healthy baby in our arms... there were no promises. I went through X-rays, CAT Scans, had Morphine and Demerol as well as many other medications... on top of all of the physical trauma to my body. To our surprise... I carried her full term and she came to us tiny... but perfect. One "perfection" (as I like to call it) that she had was that her 2nd and 3rd toes were crossed on her right foot... exactly the way that mine are permanently stuck from the accident. That's just a little bond that she and I have reminding me of the miracle that her life is. She does have to deal with dyslexia... which may or may not be related to the trauma she experienced in-utero... but she deals with it well. She is turning out to be a confident little tiny turkey! Devyn is my next child. We were sooo thrilled to have her join our family on January 6th, 2002 and had no clue what surprised she would bring to us! She is smart, determined and strong! At 2 years old she found her way to the medicine cupboard and got the child proof lid open on a bottle of blood pressure medicine. She took the whole bottle... which we think was around 22 pills. All of that happened in a split second and almost right in front of me (I was folding laundry 10 feet away from her). In a very few minutes we found her unconscious on the floor and quickly turning pale. Arryn (who was only 5 and could not read) somehow knew exactly what pills she had taken and told me that I should be concerned. Up until that point I thought that Devyn was only sleeping. To make a long story short.... on the way to the hospital Devyn's heart stopped and her breathing stopped. They did CPR the whole way and ended up putting her in an induced coma and on life support. The doctors specifically said that she probably would not make it. Our bishop (Neil Cottom) rushed to the ER as soon as he heard the news and gave her a beautiful blessing. The instant he laid his hands on her head he told her to begin to heal. The Spirit was unbelievably strong in the room and I felt an instant peace. He went on to say that Devyn had come into this world full of determination and strength and that we would all be blessed to watch her grow up with those same characteristics. That has certainly proven to be true! After her life flight to Primary Children's hospital (where the doctors still didn't believe she'd make it) she miraculously began to recover. Within 24 hours we were on our way home again to begin a life full of laughs, frustrations and awe filled moments as we watch her continue to live full of "determination & strength." Our last little blessing was Avrie Jayne Pope. I was so sad to know that it would be my last pregnancy so I enjoyed every minute of it. I relished the labor and I actually found satisfaction in a more painful and difficult than usual (for me) delivery. Avrie was born on June 16, 2004. She is happy, content, sweet and confident. She is already into style and appearance (scary) and loves the attention that she gets as the "baby" of the family. I hope that I don't become a mother that spoils her because she's my last! I find myself not being bugged as easily and just like I did with the pregnancy and delivery... I enjoy each moment... even the frustrating ones. I don't want time to fly. I want to always have little children in my home. I adore my adult children, I feel a strong bond to my teen children, and I cherish my young children. I hope that Heaven is full of children of all ages... I hope that we get to raise our spirit children from infants to adults. I hope that we get to be pregnant and experience the thrill of the first touch and smell of a child... of the first look into their tiny eyes... and of the first bond that we feel with them, knowing that they are truly a gift to bless our lives through both challenges and JOY! Thus... the name of my blog... Joy"full"home!