A week in the life of the Fiddler’s family, in pictures

Notes: this is far from complete as far as describing our week – just the pix I wanted to share with my family to go along with my weekly letter. hope you enjoy. cruise pictures to follow soon, if the planets remain aligned.

April 22, 2012

   

Here’s Rosebud’s Easter dress. I finished it on April 22. It’s sort of a tradition for me to finish her Easter dress a couple weeks late. (ahem)  

          

 

April 23, 2012

For part of Family Home Evening, we went to the deserted elementary school nearby and Exacto launched the rocket he had build for his engineering/technology class.

(i love Hummer’s face in this one :)

 

Afterward, it smelled like fireworks.

April 25, 2012

Embarkation of the Cranky Toilet

Behold the implement of destruction that caused us to file a homeowners claim for damaged flooring the day before leaving on our anniversary cruise.

. . . . . . .

.later that day.

an excursion to a nearly forgotten cemetery, for Exacto to locate the subject of several months’ research for a world history project

We had some firsthand experience with ticks and poison ivy that day. . . .still finding ticks in the car. {shudder!}

April 27, 2012

Arkansas is absolutely gorgeous this time of year. If I could just convince my family to move here (and the Church to build a temple here), I would want to stay pretty much forever, I think.

  

C’mon, Mom and Dad, sibs! How can you resist? :)

Plus, there’s this. . . .

not to mention her awesome big brothers.

.the fiddler’s wife.

our first 15 years

Come, let's be a comfortable couple. . . .And if we should get deaf, or lame, or blind, or bed-ridden, how glad we shall be, that we have somebody we are fond of, always to talk to and sit with! 

~Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby

 

Us then:

 

Us now:

 

This feels like quite a milestone to me. I am surprised by how clearly I remember the Me that decided to marry him, and how well I remember the excitement and also the trepidation about what it would all be like—the childbearing, getting through school, would he ever be able to get a job as a musician, etc. It took a lot of faith to decide to marry at age 19, especially with the ambition that I had as a musician myself; and it took even more faith to be willing to start our family, but it didn’t take any faith at all to choose Chris for my husband.

Even with my youth and naivete, I could easily see that he was worth a commitment for eternity. I had never met anyone before with such talent combined with such real humility. He is not only brilliant, he is funny, and he has no ego. He would do anything to help anyone – he loves literally every person he meets. When I became the blessed recipient of the focus of his love, I couldn’t believe my good luck. I remember telling my roommate: “I just can’t believe no one’s snapped him up before this!”

Our life together these first 15 years has been such an incredible time. Lots of ups (five children, a salaried job for a musician, a first house), some major downs (depression, stillbirth, financial woes) but through all of it he has been so constant. I haven’t always been the easiest to be around, and there are so many stresses in this crazy world. Always the adversary is doing his best to make mountains out of molehills in a relationship, but DC has been unfailingly loving and kind to me. I can’t believe how blessed I am.

I wish I could tell that Me of 15 years ago, “Yes, there will be hard things. But truly you have no idea of the depth of the love you will feel or the incredible joys you will experience.” And actually, Someone did tell me that. But now I can see for myself that it was true.

 

 

P.S. To celebrate we went on a short cruise to Mexico a few weeks ago. I hope to post pictures and non-gloating details soon. :) Also tonight we will have a German feast!