Christmas!

What a fantastic Christmas!

She was visited by Amanda & her family on Christmas Eve as well as Kristen & her gang. Then on Christmas morning, she went to Kristen's house for a yummy brunch with the grandkids and thier friends the Webbs. There, she opened all of her lovely gifts, and had a blast watching the kids open theirs from her! It was a wonderful day filled with joy and love!
For those of you that did not receive Christmas cards from Nancy this year, I thought I'd put it on her Blog so you could view it. She made a list of things she was grateful for. It was a simple card that had a picture of her and all of her grandkids on the front! Here it is for your enjoyment!

This Thanksgiving & Christmas season, I decided to make a list of thing I am truly grateful for. I thought I’d share my happiness & gratitude with all of you!
My grandkids! Truly my greatest joy! I love every time one or all of them come to visit. Just a small hug or to hear a giggle from one of them makes my day! My cup runneth over with joy from them.
My kids! They are all three very special. I was visited by my son, Aaron, this year in a surprise visit that was wonderful! And my daughter Amanda & her family moved to Gilbert this year also! I am so happy seeing them so often now! And Kristen & her family are always a welcome sight.
My testimony in the gospel. I am grateful to know assuredly that Christ lived and died for me. That he lives still today and is my constant companion, & that He knows & loves me.
Friends. I have many new & wonderful friends in my ward. They are all so caring & attentive. I also have fabulous lifelong friends that seem to never forget me! A few came for a surprise day visit earlier in the year! How wonderful it was to see their smiling faces again!
Care givers. I have fantastic care givers! They take care of my day to day needs, going above & beyond their call of duty. From nurses, to Hospice aids, to C.N.A’s, to the Bingo lady…they all do so much for me!
There is much more on my “list”, but these are the top five! I hope this Christmas, we can all reflect on the greatest gift we have been given; the gift of our Savior!
Merry Christmas to all! Love from Nancy!

Aaron Arrives!

Yep- a couple of weeks ago...Aaron came to visit mom!~ WOW! What a surprise! Mom was extatic! Cloud 9! He brought his girlfriend Karen and they stayed for the weekend with Amanda. What a fun time!

It was the first time mom had seen all of us kids together in the same place in 20 years!

He went swimming with all of his nieces and nephew, went out to dinner, and of course visited with MOM! Hope he comes back soon! Mom LOVES his visits!

It's A Miracle!

One of the reasons I took mom out of the nursing home...Hearthstone of Mesa-don't ever put your loved one there!...was that besides breaking her femor bone, she got a bedsore. For over 25 years she went without a bedsore..amazing! But then THEY decided that our secret method of preventing the bedsore was inconvenient for CNA's to do and she got a bedsore. I was told it was a stage 2 healing and by the time I got her over to Veema Assisted Living (or as I call it HEAVEN!) the nursing home told us it was stage 1. This means that the sore is just on the surface of the skin and has not bore into the body yet. But Veema the very day she moved there, discovered it was stage 4! The worst stage of all. It had bore a hole right into her body and at one point you could see the bone! OUCH! Keep in mind mom doesn't complain at all about the discomfort! SAINT! Well, since she cannot stand and walk, or even lay on her tummy, she would be putting pressure on the wound constantly! The verdict is that it will NEVER heal! ..........until........the ANGELS! Beth, Mina, Laney, Enna, and all of the nurses, have created a miracle. Under their care and watchful eyes, it has fluctuated from 4, to 3, to 4 again, back to 3 and I was just informed it is almost HEALED! IMPOSSIBLE! At least that's what we all thought! My moms endurance, positive attitude, and the love and care she has recieved have produced this small miracle! I teased mom that now she was going to live another 60 years and outlive me! The headlines read: "120 year old woman with MS surpasses grandchildren in life!" Below is a picture of angels on earth...Laney, Mina, and Beth (not pictures Enna).

Easter

Mom chose Easter at my house over church! Surprise! Surprise! Every year, she chooses church...probably because Kevin's family really doesn't 'do' Easter so it's just me and my kids. But this year, she changed her mind! Most likely because my sister nad her family live here now! We had a lovely dinner. Mom missed her youngest granddaughter, Alexandra, who was sick! But in true Grammy form, she had solid choclate bunnies for all 6 of them...sick or not! Thanks Grammy!

Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut....

Well, You learn something new everyday! I was at Bingo at mom's and when you win, you pick a treat. So I picked her out chocolate...OF COURSE! It was a KitKat I think. But then someone said the words 'Almond Joy' and boy did mom light up! That's my favorite! "What?" I asked. Since when? She said it has always been one of her favorites. Who knew? I mean I've known her for 38 years! This is news to me! Maybe I blocked it out because I hate cocnut or something! Anyways, I passed the info on to Mandy-uh-I mean-Amanda! and she promptly bought a TON of Almond Joys and Mounds for mom! So she's stocked up. No need for anyone to bring her one...at least for a while! Now if I could just remember the darn Cranberry Juice! hahaha (inside joke!)

Surprise! Surprise! Surprise!

Does it seem that we are always surprising my mom? Well, if we tell her ahead of time, she can't stop thinking/worrying about it!

Last Thursday, my mom's life long friends, (L-R) Nikki, Debbie, and Sharon drove down from Snowflake to visit with mom! My sister and I started the day by going to pick up my mom's van! OF COURSE! It wouldn't start! (I have reported this problem now twice and still haven't received a call back from Rollx vans.) And in true luck of our family...the people who are nice enough to keep my mom's van at their house were not home! AAahhhh! So we took going door to door! Well, only 1 door! Across the street a nice little old man, Paul Smith, saved us with his jumper cables! Shout out to Paul! "Woo-Hoo!" But not before the "ladies" called me and were almost here! They happened to call just as we were pushing the van out of the driveway so we could jump it! I did the fastest job EVER of getting mom ready and dressed! All the while Amanda is sitting IN the van 'cause we are afraid it won't restart! We arrived 5 minutes before the ladies did at my house! MOM WAS IN HEAVEN! And may I say, the ladies were lookin' good! What a wonderful visit and an uplifting time for my mom! It is truly wonderful to see her that happy! She was still talking about it over the weekend! Thanks girls for making a special day trip down just for mom! It made her feel special and loved! You are awesome!

Lucky Lady !

So when I visited my mom today, Cindy the traveling Bingo lady was at the home! She's a super nice gal that goes around to different assisted living homes playing games and doing crafts. My mom TOTALLY looks forward to Bingo Thursday's! (A chance to get out of bed! ) Well today I showed up with my daughter Korynn (4). Mom wasn't doing to well on her game! But right as Korynn jumped in to help out Grammy...she started winning! She won 5 games straight! They LOVE to yell Bingo together...it's so cute! Anyways, she won 5 prizes; which consist of bags of chips, stuffed animals, and candy! Mom xcollects these winnings and keeps them in her top drawer for her grandkids when they visit. What a lucky lady!

Amanda's Here!

We've all known it was coming...but we kept it secret from mom! In fact, Mandy was here after New Years to look for a house, and we LIED and told mom she came for the day to wish her a Happy Birthday! (So sweet of Manda to spend $600.00 to fly in for the day to wish our mother a happy birthday!) LOL hahaha But mom bought the story! So now THEY'RE HERE! Welcome home Alex, Amanda, Jessica (14), and Alexandra (3)!

Mom's cup runneth over!

Happy Late Anniversary!

Mom doesn't celebrate birthdays...she just has anniversaries of her 29th birthday! So if I have added correctly ( and don't trust me to that; it's double digits, and I only have ten fingers!) she is on the 34th Anniversary! Yeah Mom! It was back on January 9th, but I just now got the picture downloaded!

The Journal Jar

Some wonderful girls in my mom's ward made a Journal Jar for her. This is just a picture of one I found online...the one they made is much cuter and more colorful. What a fabulous idea! Her home teacher has done someting similar with a clipboard that hangs over her bed. For the clipboard, you write the answers on colorful pieces of paper that are then kept and compiled by him and his sweet wife. For the Journal Jar, you just pick out a question, she answeres it, and you write her answer in a notebook on her dresser...(or if you want, her real journal in her nightstand droor.) All of this will help me make a more accurate life history for her grandkids to enjoy.

So if you are planning on visiting her, please look to this journal jar or clipboard for prompts in conversation with mom. Some of the things she says are pretty funny! For Sharon, a while ago she recalled the exploding green bean incident while canning with you! And for Verona, Last Memorial Day, she told me that her and Dad had started that picnic tradition and asked if I could drive her there for it! Her short term memory is sparatic...but long term lives on!

All About ME !

This is Nancy Lynn. She is my mother. What a beautiful baby she was. She was one of two daughters that were nine years apart...she was the baby. The ripped picture to the left is of Nancy's High School Graduation. The "zebra" hair...well there's just no explanation for that!!!

Here she is today. She has 3 children, Aaron, Amanda, and Kristen. Six grandchildren, Jessica, Alexandra, Courtney, Kendyl, Connor, and Korynn.

Alot has happened to her over the years. Let me recap...

She married at the end of her senior year in High School, to Milt. A couple of years later, they found the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and were baptized! They adopted Kristen and then two years later had Aaron. Three years after that they were blessed with Amanda! Alot of moving went on after that. Some of her greatest memories and friends were during the Snowflake years. She still cherishes the friendships she made there. In 1981, she became ill, and was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. She has battled with it ever sense. Milt and her parted ways, and Nancy remained strong to her testimony of the church. Her motto became "Never give up! Never, never give up."-Winston Churchill (hence the name of her blog "nevergiveupnancy.blogspot.com!) When first diagnosed they said 9 months...but that was when they thought it was a brain tumor. Then they said just a few years...well that was almost 30 years ago! What's up with that people ask? It is her positive attitude and the willingness to laugh about things instead of cry! An example of this would be the countless hours of waiting on Dial-A-Ride..and waiting..and waiting! They even "misplaced" her a couple of times. Instead of getting mad (like I did) she just said "well, that's why we call it Dial-A-Joke!" She has taught us to laugh at things well...and you know what? It works! Although her body has given up on her, she remains strong willed and an inspiration to many.

When I told her what I was doing, she wished for me to tell a litlle about her mother and her sister. Her mother was known as "Boots" to almost all who knew her. A woman that could make friends with anyone. She stood by Nancy's side through everything and helped care for her physically and financially. She loved her mother very much. At the time of her passing, Nancy was in a nursing home, and upon coming back from the funeral, I asked how she had been doing. She often hung out in the lobby with the front desk secretary, and she told me that on Thursday morning my mom was not talkative at all. Knowing that she was grieving, she left her alone. But then she said what was weird, was that for almost an hour noone came in, the phone did not ring, it was just silent. She happened to look over at mom and see tears from her eyes. When asked, Nancy said that she felt her mother standing next to her comforting her and she was crying happy tears.

Nancy's sister was nine years older than her; Judy. She was equally as beautiful and a very strong woman. The women in our family are strong women. She looked after Nancy her whole life. Judy was a huge part of my mom's life. She had 4 kids of her own that Nancy just loved to be around. Judy could get things done my mom said. Give her a task, and she would get it done, or get answers. Mom said this helped alot in the early years of her MS as Judy would research and ask questions. Judy also passed on to heaven not long ago. Mom misses her dearly.

Here are some random things about her that I bet you did not know!

She's 4'11"-yep not tall at all!

BlueGreen eyes

very positive thinker

she was a silk florist

sews like a professional

a complete and total neat freak
a food storage guru

crafty beyond all belief

was a goer and a doer before the MS

funny

can't sing worth a darn

always was in service of someone else

She's a fighter!