Fillerups descend on SLC

Over the last four days Brenna had her first extended stretch of silence since Savannah was born. On Wednesday Savannah, Hunter, Madison and I piled into the van and headed on a road trip to SLC. My niece, Kelsey, got married on Friday, and we were headed over to be part of the festivities. Brenna wanted to go with us of course, but the draw of staying near Eliza and being able to spend a lot of time with her made Brenna's choice to stay home fairly easy. So, Bren spent four or five hours a day at the hospital and loved the opportunity to really feel like a mom to Eliza. On the other hand, the silence at home was a bit unsettling. All in all though, I think she wouldn't mind being unsettled in that manner once a year or so!


As for the rest of us, we partied and lived off the fat of the land (that is, off the generosity and kindness of my family). We stopped the first night in Vernal with my oldest sister and her family. Always a good time in Vernal--I was able to go to soccer practice with my nephew and then hoop it up with my niece and her gang later that night (a fierce rebounder is Sara). The kids enjoy spending time with their older cousins, and Aunt Jeanne always makes them feel important and loved. Ron and I get to chill on the couch and talk sports, and it's simply a good time all around.


The next day we headed to SLC where the family was gathering. After a few hours at my parents house visiting with Beth, Linda, mom and dad, we headed to my niece, Rebecca and her husband, Davis's, house. They're housesitting for his grandparents while they are on a mission in New York. So, we were able to stay in that lovely home and be the recipients of even lovelier hospitality. Rebecca and Davis, you did yourselves proud. Thanks for taking such good care of us. I especially enjoy watching how much Madison is just drawn to Rebecca. It's really cool. It started 1 1/2 years ago at Beth's wedding when Rebecca took Maddie under her wing. Time did not diminish the affection Maddie has for Rebecca. Nothing is as good for a parent's heart as knowing their children are loved and in good hands. The below pic is from Beth's wedding, but it beautifully captures how comfortable Maddie is with her.

Anyway, they picked up right where they left off, and Rebecca even made them their favorite for dinner--Kraft macaroni & cheese. Woohoo! You just can't beat it. Thanks, Rebecca for the pot stickers and egg rolls for the rest of us--very much preferred to the mac & cheese.

The rest of the SLC visit was just fantastic. We picked up a baptism dress and scriptures for Savannah. Hunter and Maddie were so distraught that they weren't getting scriptures that I went ahead and bought them travel-size copies of the Book of Mormon. It was priceless watching Hunter during the rest of the trip because he would frequently sit down with the book and just read--his finger tracing the words and his lips mouthing them.

The wedding was Friday afternoon at the SLC temple. I met Jordan for the first time, and was not at all surprised that the man Kelsey chose to marry is an absolute gentleman with a confident air coupled with a sense of humility. Very impressive. The wedding was so beautiful. I loved being in the temple and sharing that time with family and friends and especially being there to see Kelsey get married. After spending several days with her in London last year, I gained a real appreciation for the person she is. It is really cool to see nieces and nephews grow up and become an example that I enjoy looking up to.

I also got to meet Heidi's fiance Isaac, who is ridiculously impressive as well. Just surrounded by good people everywhere I turned. I love them all. Thanks Bryon and Sandra for raising Kelsey right so we all had a wonderful excuse to get together.

Now, for a couple of anecdotes: one funny and one serious.

Funny: at the wedding reception Kelsey and Jordan had their first dance and then invited everyone else onto the dance floor. I was dancing with Maddie when Hunter walked up to me with sad eyes and said he needed someone to dance with. I suggested he dance with Savannah, but he told me she was already dancing with Elise. So I suggested Aunt Jeanne, but he said she was too tall. So I apologized and said I was out of ideas. He turned away, and I kept dancing with Maddie. A couple minutes later I spotted him across the dance floor and he had found Jordan's youngest sister, Breanna to dance with. She is also six years old and in kindergarten, and they were an adorable pair. Needless to say, they attracted quite a crowd of picture takers and admirers. So, for those of you who took a picture of this moment please forward to me so I can post it (Brenna is seriously disappointed in me for my lack of picture taking during the trip, but I told her that lots of people took pictures, and I'm expecting my inbox to soon be flooded).

Serious: as we drove away from my parent's house on Saturday leaving the whole family behind I had the most wonderfully conflicting feeling in my heart. I was incredibly anxious to get back home to be with Brenna again, but at the same time I was so sad to be parting from my family. It brought tears to my eyes to think of the incredible influences they have been in my life and in my children's lives. Nothing can compare to the joy of family. From basketball games (side note: Hunter made his first unassisted basket on a 10 foot rim on Saturday) to Easter Egg hunts to E*Trade commercials to M&Ms to Wii to grand snackers and everything in between the past several days have been an absolute joy. Thanks, family. I love you all very much!