30 Things about Mom and Dad

In honor of your 30th anniversary, I present you with a list of stuff, just for you. Happy Anniversary!

Stuff I love about Mom and Dad

1. They always seem happy to hear from me (yes, even Dad, though he does at times put on a good show).
2. They are generous and kind with their time (and their money, especially if your names begin with "M" or "C" and end with "egan" or "hristopher").
3. They still laugh at each other's jokes.
4. They like to take trips together, and they're currently out of the country together for the first time in 30 years.
5. They read.
6. They know a lot of stuff (Mom, for example, knows more or less everything about current events, and Dad knows more or less everything about how to pretend he knows more or less everything. And Mom also knows a lot about being a doctor).
7. They both embrace and remix traditional gender roles (like they both cook, but Dad actually likes it, and they both want stuff done around the house, but Dad eschews the traditional notion that men should be able to tear out walls and rewire things and instead sired a son to do that stuff for him. And although I'm not sure Dad does laundry, he is certainly not above doing the dishes... if he didn't cook... and if none of his children are around...or his wife).
8. They both appreciate music. Dad is the best about dynamics. And Mom really digs African tribal music, gospel music, strong beats, folk music, and the harvest. (The harvest is not music, of course, but we all know she really digs it.)
9. They are both gospel scholars, and they taught me how to search out my own answers.
10. They have a home that makes all of their visitors feel loved, comfortable, and safe.

Stuff I remember about Mom and/or Dad

11. The special trip we took to Logan to watch Dad run the Top of Utah marathon--just the three of us.
12. Going to the Temple for the first time--just the three of us.
13. Going on a daddy-daughter date to Chili's (I must have been around 12 or 13, I think) and getting a huge mushroom-swiss burger that I ate in its entirety.
14. Picking up Dad from the Sacramento airport and having lunch with him in Old Town. He ate pork medallions with a maple-apple sauce, and I had mahi mahi for the first time, which I believe was accompanied by a mango chutney.
15. Being with Dad on some of his business trips--in San Francisco and Connecticut, primarily.
16. Going with Jeremy and Mom and Dad to San Francisco the day after Thanksgiving--just the four of us.
17. Which also reminds me of a family trip to S.F. when we ate those delicious sourdough scones with berries and whipped cream. Ooooh, yes!
18. All of the camping trips they took us on, which I have since learned for myself is no mean feat! That they ever took four children on more than one camping trip each summer--often hundreds of miles from home--is in itself noteworthy, but that we had so much fun is the miracle in itself.
19. Being with Mom in the bride room at the Oakland Temple before I got married. I have rarely felt more beautiful or more loved.
20. Having Mom and Dad visit us in Bozeman. Even though we had no grandchildren to act as a lure, they still came to see us regularly. Of course, we did live in paradise, which is a lure in itself...

Stuff I've learned from Mom and Dad

21. Faith precedes the miracle.
22. You can never love your children too much, or give them too much praise. With all the praise that my parents have lavished on me my entire life you'd think I'd have a big head (not in a physical sense, which is genetic and can be blamed on Dad's line). Really, though, knowing that they have always believed in me so much has helped to keep me humble and recognize that the source of all my blessings can always be traced outside of myself.
23. You can have hope in hard times.
24. You can do anything you put your mind to that's right for you to do.
25. There's nothing in life that is so difficult or painful that a laugh won't help to take some of the hurt away. Anyone who was around for Mom's "Robert Redford leathery midget" comment after Sam passed away would have witnessed the relief of a good laugh.
26. There is a higher form of humor that only some people have. These people, traditionally, are Weltons. And not all Weltons have it. And you can't decide for yourself if you have it. Only someone who has it can tell you if you also have it. And if you're reading this and wondering whether you do, you don't.
27. You can drive multiple times across a barren Nevada desert with four children, no technology, and no casualties.
28. You can never have too many Christmas decorations (or bric-a-brac in general).
29. You can make any day seem remarkable.
30. Families really are forever.

Happy Anniversary! I love you!