one more of spencer...for gina.

i was going through my camera and phone and came across pictures i don't know if gina has seen yet. these are for her. and you if you're interested.

spencer's final words to matthew. this was the last time i saw him alive.

pumpkins and candy corns.

saturday morning we went and bought pumpkins. the kids got to pick their own pumpkin, and they could have any one they wanted, as long as they could carry it.

 

we carved our pumpkins for family home evening.

do you like anna's new haircut? i gave it to her this morning at 8am.

i was brushing her hair to fix it for school and there was a boatload of gum in her hair. 

strawberry gum to be exact. we don't even buy strawberry gum.

i am stumped. 

do they look scary?

after the mess was cleaned up, we had a delicious treat. [this is the only way you're going to get me to eat a candy corn.] 

the end.

the rest of the story, before the beginning of the next one.

last weekend we had a trip a awesomeness scheduled in middleton, idaho. the boise temple is having an open house before they rededicate it in the middle of november. my dad drove down with ken, the kids and me. gina drove up from provo. we met in the middle at ryan and rhonda's house. i have an amazing set of photos to show you, a list of awesomeness and a couple funny stories to share about that weekend, but first i need to tell you the rest of a different story.

if you think back to monday, may 7 of this year i shared a memory monday of sad news. spencer's cancer came back with a vengeance. the doctors gave him 6 months at the most. november 6 is the six month mark. 

spencer fought for five months and two weeks. he passed away on saturday, october 20, 2012 around 3:50 in the morning at the age of 25. he was with his parents and siblings. gina was with her dad and two of her siblings. 

gina had mentioned the signs of spencer's decline over the last couple of weeks. he was moved downstairs to a hospital bed and had to have a catheter. the day or two before he passed, they put him on morphine. he was on hospice.

gina made a brave choice to kiss spencer goodbye and then leave the state to be with her family. when spencer passed, we were able to be her comfort, the same way spencer's family was able to comfort each other.

at the end of our weekend, dad and ken went home with nicole, matthew and anna. i went home to provo with gina, and stayed with her until after spencer's funeral.

spencer was burried on october 25, in the provo city cemetery.

• spencer was kind. i never heard him say a mean thing about anyone, and i was sitting right next to him when he could have. [and should have!]
• our family made him nervous. really nervous. 
• he was quiet and soft spoken.
• he was super funny.
• spencer didn't say much, but when he spoke, it was worth listening to.
• spencer treated matthew in such a way that matthew thought he had made a friend for life. they spoke on the phone and texted back and forth.
• he survived brain cancer, chemo and radiation once before it came back.
• was played the piano very well.
• spencer was gina's everything. she truly loved him.

below are some photos of the day. 

1. gina and spencer's mom, calli.

2. before the funeral started.

3. at the cemetery.

4. gina and spencer's casket.

edited to add: 

pictures of a happier nature.

awkward and awesome

awkward:

• my glasses are bent. they sit crooked on my face. i need to go have them adjusted.
• every time i go to panera bread with my friends i forget said glasses and can't read the menu. it's a little nerve wracking [racking? no.] for a couple of minutes.
• i change the words in my sentences to different words if i don't know how to spell them.
• 
  

awesome:

• i'm spending this weekend in poulsbo/bremerton with my sister and my dad.
• i'm super excited for general conference. it's my favorite!
• i've recently acquired the two volume set of julia child's 'mastering the art of french cooking.' i got it for a steal.
• matthew put up a christmas tree this week and decorated it with a whole bunch of halloween items. it looks awesome.

• anna is incapable of walking. she half skips everywhere she goes. [and still snaps a lot.]
• this scrappy little number. oh how i love it so much!

happy jueves!

just another list

• i have purchased 7 more christmas presents.
• ken has had 2 spanish classes and now he thinks he's fluent.
• i don't like drinking soda out of a bottle or through a straw.
• I sing the hymn, 'let us all press on' when i'm ironing quilt blocks.
• after i finished rewriting the entire primary program, i found my original interviews.
• if we would have named nicole, charlet nicole, her nickname could have been charcoal. 
• nicole doesn't like being called charcoal.  i tried it.
• apparently you can deck the halls with balls of jelly. [sing it. it works.]
• i want to write a whole blog post with a lisp.  it would be really fun to read.  for me.

tho, today matthew and i worked on thpelling and math. he thang thongs [haha] and thpent time doing thcience projectth.

awesome! right?

okay. have a great night. thankth for reading.