Graveside Service

Last Saturday was my grandpa's graveside service. It was short and simple as he requested but beautiful. He is buried next to my great grandparents and is in a beautiful spot, near the mountains. Quite a few family members came that I hadn't expected to see. I was happy to see my grandpa's brother, my great uncle Jay. He's in his late 80s and his health isn't good, but it was wonderful to see him. I've always loved him. Several of my dad's cousins came as well as all of my grandparents' children except one. I am certain that had the service been held in Arizona (where my grandparents lived for about 50 years) then many more people would have been there to honor my grandpa.


My grandpa has always loved bagpipe music and played the bagpipes, at least a little. So there was a bagpipe player there, and that brought tears to my eyes. My aunt Julia said the opening prayer, my dad's Bishop said a few words, my uncle Tom gave the dedicatory prayer and my uncle Dan said the closing prayer. Then my grandfather received his full military honors, including having Neil Bills play Taps and present the flag. In the program, a few words penned by my grandpa were included. He wrote:


"And now the end is near,
and soon I'll face the final curtain.
To make things very clear,
I will state my case of which I'm certain.
I've lived a life that's full,
I've traveled many highways and byways.
But more, much more than this,
I tried to do it His way.


Regrets I have a few and some
sins that I won't mention.
I did what I thought I had to do
and carried through without exemption.
I faced my foes and took their blows
and tried to forgive the way the Savior shows.
And through it all, I tried to stand tall,
and do it His way."

--Reed Gordon Bills


I can think of no tribute more fitting for my grandpa than his own words. He, of course, wasn't perfect, but he was truly one of the greatest men I have ever known. And he did forgive others, love others, serve, and try to do it His way, to emulate the Savior's example.

After the graveside service, we had a small luncheon at my Uncle Dan and Aunt Suzanne's church. Several people had brought memorabilia.... his honorable discharge from the military, wedding certificate, photos, and so on. Several aunts, uncles and cousins shared their memories and thoughts.

I don't want to forget his jokes about the brick and the dog...and so I'm going to type it here. I just want to say that the delivery really matters (and as my aunt Julia said, perhaps you have to be a Bills to find it funny.) But, it is something I don't want forgotten. So here it is. A long time ago, there was a man who wanted a large building built. He found someone to hire to build the building with a thousand bricks. The agreement was that he must use every brick to build the building and if he did, he would earn a large sum of money. So day after day, the man worked on constructing the building. When it was finally complete, one brick was missing. So the man didn't earn a penny.


Second joke. Once there was a lady on a train. She had her dog traveling with her. She loved her dog. She carried him in her lap and lovingly petted him. Sitting next to her was a man with a cigar. He smoked and smoked and it made the woman cough and bothered her dog. She politely asked the man to stop smoking. He refused. She replied that it was bothering her and her precious dog. Then she grabbed the cigar and threw it out the train window. The man grabbed her dog and threw it out the train window. Outraged and worried, the woman pulled the cord to stop the train. The conductor came rushing down to see what was the matter. She said the man had thrown her dog out the window and the man yelled that she'd thrown his cigar out the window. The train stopped and they got off the train to look for the dog. The dog came running toward the woman and what do you think he had in his mouth?


(pause)....the brick! :) This always elicits a laugh from those of us lucky enough to hear my grandpa tell it.

My aunt Julia read a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson: SUCCESS

To laugh often and much
to win the respect of intelligent people
and affection of children; to earn the
appreciation of honest critics and
endure the betrayal of false friends;
to appreciate beauty, to find the best
in others; to leave the world a bit
better, whether by a healthy child
a garden patch or redeemed
social condition; to know even
one life has breathed easier because
you have lived. This is to have
succeeded.


-Ralph Waldo Emerson

She concluded by saying that far more than one person has breathed easier because he lived. That quote really describes him so well. My uncle Bruce shared some memories of the copper mine near Vernal that they had years ago...when they were young. He also said that he remembers my grandpa saying something like we eat when it is time to eat, we rest when it is time to rest and we work the rest of the time. And he lived by that. He worked hard. He was injured in WWII and was in pain throughout most of his life, but that didn't cause him to slow down nor did it lead him to complain.

I am so grateful that my life was touched by his in countless ways. I love him so much and I am so grateful that he doesn't have to suffer any more. I am grateful that he is reunited with loved ones that have already departed this life. I am grateful for the knowledge that I will see him again. I just have to live my life so that I will be worthy of that priviledge.

My 3 New Loves

I have 3 new things that I love.

Squash with garlic pepper seasoning
Super easy, but oh, so yummy.
I peel a yellow squash or zucchini, slice it up, spray with a tiny bit of olive oil, then sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. garlic flavored bread crumbs and 2 tsp. Tastefully Simple garlic pepper seasoning (I'm sure you could substitute a pinch of pepper and 1 tsp. garlic powder. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Yum!

Broiled Grapefruit
This recipe comes from Sweet Treats and More, one of my new favorite sites for recipes.

Slice a grapefruit in half. Use a knife to separate the fruit from the edges of the peel. Line a pan with foil and place the grapefruit on the pan, with citrus side up. Sprinkle each half with 1/2 Tbsp. brown sugar and a pinch of cinnamon. Place in oven on broil for about 4-6 minutes. Then top with a dollop of plain (or I prefer vanilla flavored) yogurt. This is so delicious! And she has lots of other yummy stuff to try. I made her Earthquake Cake on Saturday and everyone loved it.

And my 3rd new love is a tv show that Alfredo introduced me to. I watch it on Hulu now while I'm jogging on the treadmill ... it is called Awake. A man was in a car accident with his family. Now he wakes up and he is with his wife and his son is dead, then he goes to sleep and wakes up and he's with his son and his wife is dead. He is a police detective (with 2 different partners) and has 2 different shrinks. His cases often overlap between his two lives and he can't tell which life is real and which is a dream. Very interesting show. I'm loving it.

My grandpa Reed G. Bills

My grandpa's health has been deteriorating. Last night my dad called to tell me that the nursing facility called and they could not wake him all day. He had a fever and showed signs that the end was near. This morning, I drove to Provo to visit my grandma and grandpa. I had a nice visit with my grandma. Today she knew who I was, and she also seemed aware that my grandpa's end was near (her clarity and memory are spotty at best...last time I visited she didn't know who I was at all). A few minutes before I left, my grandma's sister, my great aunt Joann, came to visit. I left and I guess only minutes later, my grandpa passed. I am glad that I was able to say goodbye. He never woke, but I am still glad that I was able to kiss him on the cheek and whisper that I love him.

My grandpa is truly one of the best men I have had the privilege to know. On the drive there, I was listening to a fireside given by Sister Emily Watson Nelson and Sister Sheri Dew called The Savior Will Heal Without a Scar. They talked about the power the Savior has to heal... To heal us spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally. To heal us completely so there is no scar, to help us overcome our sorrows, our trials, our weaknesses, our sins. They talked briefly about death and that if we live right, then there is really no such thing as premature death...but that to us left here to grieve, death always seems as if it came too soon. There is truth to that. I am grateful that my grandpa has been released...that he is reuniting with his parents and others that he loves. But I am sad that such a great man, one that I love so much, is gone. I am so grateful for the plan of salvation, for the Savior's gift of immortality...that we will all be resurrected and that if we live righteously and we repent of our sins, then we can live eternally with our Savior and our families. I am grateful that because He has engraven us on the palms of our hands, because of His Atonement, we can be healed without a scar. I want to try a little harder to do what is right, to draw nearer to the Lord, to follow the example set by my grandpa.

My grandpa was a gentle man. (This is especially impressive to me, because from what I understand, his father was not gentle or kind but rather harsh. My grandfather overcame his difficult childhood and became such a wonderfully kind person.) He was calm and composed and forgiving and loving. He was both intelligent and wise. He read a lot and knew a lot, but he also really understood a lot about life and how to be happy and how to counsel others. He had big, strong hands and he was a very hard worker.

As a little girl, both of my parents worked and so we spent a lot of time at my grandparents' home. My grandma picked us up from school every day and we spent our afternoons with her. We spent most of our summers at their home. We also went there for family gatherings, Sunday dinners, and other events. When my parents divorced, my mom and sisters and I moved in with them (even though they are my father's parents.) I know my grandfather really helped my mom during this difficult time, helping her to forgive my dad so that she could be set free from her pain and anger. My grandpa was a Bishop either before I was born or when I was very little. Even years later, people often called him Bishop and many people came to him to receive counseling. As I said, he was very wise...and he was a great listener.

My grandpa was also a lot of fun. My cousins, sisters and I can all remember swimming in the pool and having him pretend to be a drain monster that would try to catch us. He would also put us on his feet and dance around, singing, "You can have her, I don't want her. She's not right for me." Or "You can't have her, I do want her. She's just right for me. She's just right, she's just right, she's just right for me." My grandpa also sang a song about tuppence a lot. "Oh, I've got six pence, jolly, jolly six pence. I've got six pence to last me all my life. I've got tuppence to spend and tuppence to lend and tuppence to send home to my wife... Poor wife. No cares have I to grieve me, no pretty little girls (often he's substitute one of our names...like no pretty little Jennys) to deceive me. I'm happy as a king, believe me, as we go rolling, rolling home. Rolling home. Rolling home. Rolling home, rolling home. By the light of the silvery moo--oo-oon. ..." Then it would start over but with four pence, then tuppence, then no pence.

My grandpa loved to tell jokes. He had a unique sense of humor, with his favorite joke being the joke about the brick. Perhaps the strangest (and maybe not the funniest) of jokes, but one that my whole extended family loves.

My grandparent's home was always open...to their children, grandchildren, even neighborhood children. My grandma often gave snacks to neighbors and gave them a safe place to play after school, especially for a few whose homes were not very safe. Most of their children moved home at some point in time for various reasons, and they were always welcomed.

I always felt safe with my grandparents. And loved and cherished. I am so grateful for their example.

Horse back riding

During spring break, Ella's friend from school, Zoe, had a sleepover at our house. We had pizza, popped popcorn, and the girls watched a movie. The next morning, the girls played and played...inside and out. Even though Zoe is Ella's friend, the other two girls get along well with her too. In fact, Gabby even slept downstairs with the other girls.

Zoe and her mom own a horse. Zoe's mom (who is the vice principal at the girl's school) offered to let the girls come ride the horse. Michelle and Ella have ridden the horse, Delta, once before and were very excited to ride it again. Gabby was too scared to ride Delta or even to sit on her but she did enjoy petting the horse. The girls also got to help brush Delta and give her treats afterward. Gabby enjoyed it enough to talk about Delta for several days afterward. Zoe's mom is agreat teacher, and Michelle especially did a great job riding.

Museum of Natural History at the U of U

During spring break, my sister Suzy spent a few days with us. On one of the days, we headed to the new Museum of Natural History. We've been to the older one but this was our first trip since it reopened in its newer, bigger facility. There were a lot of people there, but it really didn't seem crowded since things are on five different levels. There was a lot to see... dinosaur bones of course, as well as a few live animals. There were puppets to play with and displays of animals in various habitats.








I thought this little guy was so cute...and it was so cool how he runs on just his hind legs. :)


It was a fun visit and we plan to go again in the summer some time. :)

This Easter bag brought to you by the letter B!

Sesame Street would have been proud of the Easter bunny's basket (well actually bags this year!). Everything inside began with the letter B...a bag, books, bunny candies, bubble gum, and bubbles.

Easter Fun...the week before

We did all of the traditional Easter activities as well as a few new activities (at least new to us) during the week before Easter. Some were definitely secular, some were more spiritual. I think all were fun.

We did an Easter egg hunt. A friend joined us for this.





We dyed eggs. I found (at the dollar store) cute little wrap arounds/stickers that turned your eggs into bunnies, and the kids had fun dying them and decorating them. Another friend joined us for this.








We made (paper) Easter lilies. (Another idea from the blog We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ.)




We also made our annual Easter bunny cake. I bake it (in a bunny shaped cake pan) and then the kids get to decorate it. Some years it turns out looking at least kind of like a bunny. This year the girls had two extra friends over and it turned out looking like an abomination. Kidding. It was covered, and I mean covered, with sprinkles, colorful frosting, and sugar crystals. Other than the shape, it didn't resemble a bunny at all. But the point (in my mind) is for the kids to have fun and not to create a masterpiece (as I am not crafty/artistic, it wouldn't look much like a masterpiece even if I was the one to decorate it...) and that goal was accomplished.



And another new addition, from the blog We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ... how jellybeans teach us of Christ.


We also read several stories about Easter, including
The Easter Story by Carol Heyer (Christian perspective)
In the Garden by Caralyn Buehner (LDS perspective)
The Egg Tree by Katherine Milhous (fiction, about Pennsylvania Dutch)
Celebrate Easter with colored eggs, flowers and prayer by Deborah Heiligman (nonfiction about traditions around the world)
Three Days without Light: A Nephite Easter Story by Timothy Robinson (LDS perspective, Book of Mormon)